A lot of folks get a little nervous when they see medlar fruits. Are they edible? Can you eat them raw? Are they actually poisonous? It’s totally understandable—medlars aren’t exactly the most common sight in American backyards these days. If you’re scratching your head about this “mystery fruit,” here’s the lowdown.
Good News: Medlars Aren’t Poisonous
First things first: the fruit of the Common Medlar (Mespilus germanica) is completely safe to eat. It doesn’t contain any toxic compounds, so you can breathe a sigh of relief! However, there is a catch: you really don’t want to eat them when they’re fresh off the tree and underripe. At that stage, they are rock-hard and, frankly, taste pretty terrible. Because they’re so tough and astringent early on, they’re basically inedible until you wait for the right moment to harvest.
Once they’re fully ripe (or “bletted,” as gardeners say), they become delicious and are packed with healthy vitamins. You can eat them raw right out of the skin or use them to make some seriously tasty jams and jellies. Just one quick pro-tip: don’t confuse the Common Medlar with the Rockspray Cotoneaster (Cotoneaster). Even though people sometimes call Cotoneaster “dwarf medlar” and the berries look similar, they aren’t related. Cotoneaster is an ornamental groundcover, and its berries are considered mildly toxic and definitely not for snacking!
