Elder - The Devil's Tree

Why do Elder trees have an association with The Devil? More of our videos about trees at http://www.test-tube.org.uk/trees

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• elder
• tree
• elderflower

[0igres]

Elder trees keep away the devil? The devil is also know as Beezlebub which translates from Hebrew to lord of the flies.

[Kowzorz]

I want to try fried elder flower!

[BarneySaysHi]

So that's where the Elderberries come from! One famous line from Monty Python states "Your mother was a hamster and your father smelled like Elderberries!" Thank you Nottingham Science!

[Erikur17]

There is no Old English word eldr 'fire'; that is an Old Norse word and has nothing to do with elder the tree; like alder (from OE alor) the [d] is epenthetic in ellern-treow 'elder' which is the Old English form.

[txcaddo]

the way I was taught by my Sicilian grandma was that "Sambuca", the spirit of the elder, does not like fire, and will make you sick if you burn him....but if you honor his wishes he will make good wine from his berries and flowers..and will keep flies and witches away from the house...in Sicily, elder is kept over doorways to keep witches away and bundles are used with holy water to bless / cleanse the home...name was changed to "San Sambuca" after the inquisition. thanks for the video!

[WhiteTiger333]

@biohazard93808 I think you may have something, there. I googled on the constituents of both and yes, there does appear to be some cross-over. Personally, I love the smell of Citronella, but maybe only because it invokes my childhood and catching fireflies in the backyard, while reeking of citronella. :D

[biohazard93808]

@WhiteTiger333 I believe, but don't quote me on it, but I believe that it is very similar to Citronella but not exactly.

[IcEye89]

To quote Monty Python: Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries.

[WhiteTiger333]

I wonder what the elder has that repels flies. It can't be the "bad smell" as such, it would have to be a chemical constituent since 'flies' and 'bad smell' generally go together. At any rate, I'm subbing - I love learning about Nature/Folklore intersections! (And I just found you while viewing the Professor's Braziline video on Periodic Table of Videos).

[figgi0]

how can I recognize this tree?

[Palafico3]

Don't they contain cyanide? I wouldn't recommended ingesting it.

[ataraxic89]

Hmm elder wand...