Black berries from a tree. They love them, are they ok?

[Shellyb]

No, they don't look like that. They are small and round. ?? Nothing I'd eat but the chickens have a different pallet, lol.

 

[Freyja]

A photo would be helpful if you can post one. Might it be a blue elderberry ? Here in the west blue elderberries (Sambucus caerulea and S. mexicana) are native and are great wildlife trees -- more species of birds eat the berries than probably any other native fruiting trees. Our chickens LOVE the berries. To me, even the ripest ones taste a bit astringent but I'm going to try them next year in a jam or syrup. The leaves and other parts of the plant have alkaloids and can be poisonous to people (not sure about birds) but the fruit are safe for all.

 

[JewellFarm]

Mullberries, I want some!!!!

 

[insiderart]

Yes I guess maybe we need a photo. Could be many things. Wild black cherries or something.

 

[smileysal]

Quote:
What do you think this is guys????.....oh yeah, a PHOTO!!!!

 

[gritsar]

Quote:
What do you think this is guys????.....oh yeah, a PHOTO!!!!

Yes, it is and a very good one. However, we need a photo from the OP (Shellyb) to know what kind of tree they are talking about.

 

[mamagardener]

It may have been a pin cherry, or a black cherry. We have them, they have little berries smaller than a blueberry and very dark. The tree itself gets pretty tall . Does that sound like it?

 

[jwchicklady]

I am going to guess without a picture--I think you are talking about a choke cherry tree. These are very tall trees that drop little round purplish type berries at this time of year. They are not poisonous. People make wine out of them, my dog eats them, raccoons eat them, and my chickens eat them. They have small little pits. I have not seen any problems with my chickens eating them. I am not sure if they eat the pits or what happens to the pits if they eat them??

 

[Shellyb]

Sorry, I'm not a good pic poster. They don't seem to have bothered anyone of them yet so I guess it's ok. Yes they are smaller then blueberries and alot darker too. Thanks for the responses.

 

[vtsarahb]

My chickens love berries too. They eat every berry that they can get their beaks on (which is quite a lot- I have lots of berry bushes in my yard).

I've heard that eating berries/fruits will make their eggs taste funny... is this true? They won't start laying for another few weeks.