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Elderberry is a large shrub or small tree with rugged bark and 5 to 7 leaflets. The leaves smell a bit odd. It bears flattened heads of white flowers in early summer which give rise to dense bunches of small black fruits. The fruit famously makes a good wine or can be used to flavour gin. The flowers are used to make cordial or champagne. It grows well on chalk and is being harvested commercially for both flowers and berries. Common in larger hedges and wood margins. It is excellent for wildlife – insects on the flowers and birds for the berries.
Sambucus nigra
Common name: Elderberry.
Native: Europe
Provenance: UK
Size and spread (10 years): 4m x 3m
Treatment required: Deeply dormant requires 39 weeks stratification treatment.
Seeds / kg: c. 327,500 90% viable
Ideal sowing period: Spring
Soil conditions: Most soils, thrives on chalk.
Planting instructions: plant as part of a natural looking hedge or in the wilder parts of the garden
Mature height: 6m x 6m
pic courtesy of Willow, CC BY-SA 2.5 , via Wikimedia Commons
| Weight | 5.00 g |
|---|---|
| Size | Seed pack (approx 1350 seeds) |
| Genus | Sambucus |
| Family | Adoxaceae |
| Flowering Month | May, June |
| Colour | cream |
| Hardiness | Hardy |
| Life Cycle | shrub |
| Evergreen | deciduous |
| Interest | flowers, fruit |
| Wildlife | yes |
| Native | yes |
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