How do you know what wild berries are poisonous?

Question

How can I tell which berries I can eat and which are poisonous in the wild?

Answer 1

The best way is to reference a field guide book or app on your phone. If you don't have these, there are still a couple of general tricks to use:

1. Don't eat berries that are yellow or white or green!
2. Red berries - it's 50/50 safe. Not the best odds but not the worst either. Generally if they are solo berries (vs. those growing in clusters) they're usually ok. 
3. Black and blue berries: usually ok! Look for ones that grow like blackberries or raspberries - in aggregate.
4. Don't eat berries from trees and bushes that give off "warnings" like sharp spines, pointy hairs, or spurs, milky sap, have three-leaf growth pattern like poison ivy has, or has a bitter or soapy taste.
5. Test the berry! You can smash it on your arm and wait for 5 minutes to see if it causes irritation. If it doesn't, you can try that on your lips and gums (don't swallow!) for 5 minutes. If that doesn't cause irritation then you can chew it (still don't swallow!) for 10-15 minutes. Note: only do on type of berry at a time when you do step number 5
6. IF YOU MUST: eat one or two of the berries at at time - but even if they passed #5, still don't eat a whole handful. You don't want toxins to build up in your stomach. Eat them spaced out. 

It's best to become familiar too with some of the more common poisonous berries out there before you find yourself in a situation where you have to eat an unknown wild berry! That way you don't get them mixed up.