How to: Pokeberry Ink
I tried making pokeberry ink for the first time this year. Poke grows readily in our area, so I let one of the volunteer plants in our garden go—it grew to more than 9’ tall! In addition to growing berries for ink, it has also fed our birds this summer and provided a nice shady spot for Rusty to nap on warm days.
Beware, if you plan to grow poke, most parts of the plant are poisonous to humans as well as many animals. According to the internet, you shouldn’t even touch the plant without gloves.
That said, my father, who grew up in coal mining community in southern Kentucky, often talks about the delicious poke leaves his grandmother used to cook. I’ve heard that this is the only part that is non-toxic, but I’m still not willing to try it.
I do, however, work with poke without gloves (as you can in the photos—I hate to wear single-use gloves). I’m allergic to just about everything and still have no reaction if I wash up quickly and thoroughly (and have no cuts on my hands). Still, I recommend you wear gloves if working with poke.
How to make the ink:
Gather ripe berries—When they’re ripe, the pokeberries are dark purple on fuchsia stems. Their skins break easily, so handle gently.
Crush the berries—I recommend using a glass container that can be sterilized later and/or equipment that is never used for cooking.
Strain the liquid—I recommend using a piece of cheesecloth for this or a non-food-use fine mesh strainer. The seeds are fairly small and would slip through a standard strainer.
Add preservative—In this case, I added about 1/2 teaspoon table salt to approximately 2 Tablespoons of poke juice. I have also read that white vinegar works, but I opted for salt to avoid watering down the ink.
Refrigerate—I highly recommend labeling the storage jar with a “do not eat” label. I’m told it lasts up to two months in the refrigerator. I plan to freeze some to see if it can be preserved longer this way or if freezing ruins the ink.
Use in spellwork—According to Scott Cunningham’s Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs, poke is used in spellwork for courage and hex-breaking, but the ink is used for any general spellwork. I used a turkey feather to write with, but a standard metal-nib dip pen works as well (I’m told glass doesn’t hold this ink as well). I highly recommend blotting after dipping in the ink to avoid blobs blurring you text.
Pokeberry juice stains just about anything (it’s used as a dye too). I was able to clean our butcher block countertop with some rags and a little bleach spray. It washed off my hands with only soap and hot water.
Have you tried making poke ink? What did you think?
