Identifying red berries: Are they edible or poisonous?

Trees with edible red berries

Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna)

Clusters of small fruits are dark to bright red in colour, rounded in shape and 7-14mm in size, borne on twiggy, thorny branches. Widely grown in hedges and often found as individual trees in fields and woodlands. Deciduous leaves are green and deeply divided into three to seven lobes. While the fruit is edible raw, the taste is sour and the texture dry and mealy. Best cooked and made into a jelly.

Rowan or mountain ash (Sorbus aucuparia)

A tough, hardy deciduous tree that grows naturally in upland areas as well as being planted throughout the UK. Clusters of rounded berries up to 10mm in size ripen in late summer to brilliant orange and red. Although suitable to eat raw, the berries have a bitter taste, so are most commonly used to make jellies and cooked in other dishes.

Whitebeam (Sorbus aria)

Mainly found in southern parts of the UK, whitebeam forms a small deciduous tree with oval leaves that are bright green above and paler beneath. Red to scarlet fruit is oval in shape, 8-15 mm in size. Harvest after the first frosts and eat raw or cooked.

Yew (Taxus baccata)

A tall, evergreen tree clothed with dark green, flattened leaves borne in rows, yew is commonly found in churchyards and is widely planted in parks and large gardens. Bear in mind that only the flesh of the red fruits is edible: all other parts of the tree are poisonous to humans and animals, especially the seed of the fruit which must not be chewed as this would release toxins and can be fatal if left untreated. Indeed, the word ‘toxin’ is derived from Taxus, the botanical name for yew. The correct name for the fruit is an aril, which is a type of modified cone, rather than a berry. These are bright red against the evergreen foliage, and are 8-15mm long and wide, and open at one end, revealing the poisonous seed within.

Shrubs with edible red berries

Dog rose (Rosa canina)

A popular hedgerow plant, dog rose berries are known as hips and are bright red, oval in shape, and 10-20mm long. Rosehips are rich in Vitamin C and have been used as a food source for centuries. Their consumption rocketed during World War II as food imports dwindled, and health concerns over the lack of vitamin-rich citrus fruits led the Government to promote rosehip collection nationwide, most of which was consumed in the form of rosehip syrup. However, the fruit is fiddly to prepare as only the fleshy part can be consumed – while not poisonous, the seeds cause stomach irritation and must be removed first.

Poisonous red berries

Bryony

Both black bryony (Tamus communis) and white bryony (Bryonia dioicia) bear red berries that are extremely poisonous. These climbing plants are often found in hedges where the slender stems scramble through and over other shrubs to a height of several metres. Berries are born in clusters, rounded and bright glossy red in colour, and often remain well into winter. Black bryony berries are 10mm long and wide, while white bryony berries are 1.5cm long and wide. Because dog rose is also a hedgerow shrub, be aware that bryony stems may grow through roses and the fruits may be found close together.

Holly (Ilex aquifolium)

Holly may be a festive favourite, but the berries are not edible – even two or three berries is sufficient to cause stomach upset in a child. Holly is found both in hedges and as small trees, densely clothed with dark green, usually very prickly leaves, which are evergreen, although named varieties can have variegated foliage, as pictured. The bright red berries are 6-10mm long and wide.

Lords-and-ladies (Arum maculatum)

Lords-and-ladies is a low-growing, herbaceous plant that becomes dormant in autumn, leaving a tightly packed cluster of bright red berries, up to 5cm long, on a short stem.

Spindle (Euonymus europaeus)

In size, usually a bush but may form a small tree, attractive in appearance with bright pink fruit that opens in four segments to reveal an orange berry, up to 1.5cm long and wide. The toxin in the fruit causes an upset stomach, vomiting and diarrhoea. However it is slow acting and may take up to 24 hours for ill effects to manifest.

Wayfaring tree (Viburnum lantana)

Wayfaring tree forms a bush with rounded deciduous leaves with toothed edges, and grows up to several metres high. Loose clusters of red berries fade to black, and are up to 8mm long. They are mildly toxic.

Woody nightshade (Solanum dulcamara)

Woody nightshade or bittersweet (Solanum dulcamara) looks similar to bryony, as they both scramble through hedgerows, although nightshades are usually lower-growing. They're found in fields, verges, and waste ground. The poisonous bright red berries are up to 10mm long, are borne in clusters and persist on the branches long after the leaves have fallen.