crafts


turning and furnishings

The hard heart alder Elder wood has a fine, close grain that polishes well.

Its hardness made it perfect wood for making skewers for butchers, shoemakers' pegs,  tops for angling rods and needles for weaving fishing nets,

construction carpentry

I do not know of any construction use of Elder, though I can imagine it making fine joinery dowels.

other crafts

Sackbuts, an ancient instrument that was the predecessor to trumpets and saxophones were made from hollowed Elder branches, and some people make wooden whistles from them today.

The pith, the soft interior of Elder brnaches is one of the world’s lightest natural solids. It is still used today for holding biological specimens under microscopes.

I have memories of school days hollowing out Elder twig stems to make excellent pea shooters, perhaps my most violent days.



to read about Elder as a fuel in the hearth, please click here