Common Elderberry

Sambucus nigra

L. Species

Sambucus nigra
Paul Cook via iNaturalist — CC BY 4.0
Sambucus nigra photograph 1 Sambucus nigra photograph 2 Sambucus nigra photograph 3 Sambucus nigra photograph 4 Sambucus nigra photograph 5 Sambucus nigra photograph 6
Botanical name
Sambucus nigra
Also known as
Black Elder, Black Elderberry, Common Elder, Common Elderberry, Elder, Elderberry, European Black Elder, European Black Elderberry, European Elder, European Elderberry, Europen Elder, West Indian Elder
Family
Viburnaceae
Genus
Sambucus
Flowering period
June
Height
4–6 m
Spread
3–4 m
Hardiness
Fully hardy (RHS H6)
Reference
World Flora Online

How to grow Common Elderberry

Written by the GardenDecoded editorial team Last reviewed 21 July 2026 Written for UK gardens How we research our guidance

Sunlight
Full sun to partial shade; coloured-leaved forms need sun
Watering
Low once established
Soil
Most soils; favours fertile, moist, nitrogen-rich ground

Planting

Fast, coarse and undemanding — good for a wild corner or a quick screen, less so for a formal border. It naturalises readily from bird-sown seed, and you will find seedlings.

Pruning

For the cut-leaved and dark-leaved ornamental forms, cut hard back to a low framework in late winter each year; this gives the best foliage but sacrifices the flowers. Plants grown for flowers and fruit should just have old stems thinned out.

Propagation

Hardwood cuttings in autumn root very easily. Softwood cuttings in summer also work.

Pests and diseases

Blackfly can swarm on the shoot tips in early summer. Otherwise robust.

Value to wildlife

High. Broad flat flowerheads feed hoverflies and other insects in June, and the black berries are taken in quantity by blackbirds, starlings and thrushes.

Notes

The wood is brittle and large plants split in wind. Keep them cut back rather than letting an elder build a heavy top. Raw berries and all green parts should not be eaten — check its toxicity before planting where children or pets have access.

This guidance was researched and written by GardenDecoded — see our editorial policy for how guides are checked and reviewed.

Other names for this plant

These names have all been used for Sambucus nigra but are no longer the accepted name. You may still meet them on old labels, in books, or in nursery catalogues.

Sambucus alba Sambucus aurea Sambucus columnaris Sambucus dissecta Sambucus elegans Sambucus graveolens Sambucus hirta Sambucus laciniata Sambucus leucocarpa Sambucus lucida Sambucus monstrosa Sambucus nigra f. laciniata Sambucus nigra f. laciniata Sambucus nigra f. pendula Sambucus nigra subsp. nigra Sambucus nigra var. laciniata Sambucus pulverulenta Sambucus pyramidata Sambucus virescens Sambucus vulgaris

Others in Sambucus

Sambucus × strumpfii
Sambucus racemosa subsp. pubens
Sambucus racemosa var. leucocarpa
Sambucus racemosa var. melanocarpa
Sambucus adnata
Sambucus africana
Sambucus australasica
Sambucus australis
Southern Elder

GardenDecoded is an educational gardening reference. Botanical data comes from World Flora Online and GBIF; growing guidance is our own. Always check a plant's toxicity and local invasiveness status before planting, and never eat or apply a plant based on this site alone.