Sambucus caerulea ( Blue Elderberry ) is a deciduous shrub that is native to North America. The Blue Elderberry produces edible berries during summer and attracts bees and butterflies throughout the spring. Native tribes used the plant to make wind instruments, medicines, dyes, and smoking pipes.
Suitable for Cold, Temperate and Sub-Tropical climates.
Of all the Elderberry varieties, Blue Elderberry is the most versatile when it comes to climate. Unlike the closely related Red Elderberry and the Black Elderberry, this species can be found in northern Mexico as well as Canada. If you are in a Sub-Tropical or warm temperate climate the Blue Elderberry will flower and produce more berries than its cousins.
Sambucus caerulea is native to the Western United States, northern Mexico, and British Columbia in Canada. It is found from California in the west, Montana in the north, Texas in the south and as far east as Oklahoma.
The other common name for the Blue Elderberry is simply Blue Elder.
Note: The raw berries contain a mild toxin which may induce nausea in some people. Even so, the native American tribes used Blue Elderberries fresh, dried, and cooked for food.
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Growth
Sambucus caerulea is a large, deciduous, fruiting shrub that can reach heights of up to 9 metres (30 feet) and without pruning can spread a similar distance wide. Blue Elderberry often grows wildly from several stems which should be heavily pruned after the fruiting season.
Leaves are hairless, sharp-toothed and pointed, elliptical to lanceolate with a blade that extends unequally from the stalk at the base. They grow randomly in size, ranging from 3-15cm (1-6 inches). During late spring and early summer, white/creamy coloured flowers form a cluster that can reach 20cm (8 inches) wide. These umbel shaped flowers have a strong, unpleasant odour.
The fruit arrives later in the summer and are juicy, round, small (about 5mm or quarter of an inch wide) and are bluish, almost black, in appearance. Perhaps to distinguish themselves from their Black cousin (Sambucus nigra), the berries have a glaucous powder coating which gives them a pale powdery blue finish.
It can take Blue Elderberry shrubs 4-5 years to begin flowering and fruiting. For more information about growing Blue Elderberry plants click here.
Note: Germination instructions can be found in the ‘Germination Instructions Tab’ below. Upon purchase you will receive these detailed instructions via email so that you have a permanent record.
FAMILY:
Adoxaceae
CLIMATE:
Cold, Temperate, Sub-Tropical.
TEMPERATURE RANGE:
-10°C to 40°C / 14 to 104°F
SOIL TYPE:
Well-draining, 50/50 sand and soil.
LOCATION:
Full Sun – Light Shade.
HEIGHT:
Up to 9 metres (30 feet)
WIDTH:
Up to 9 metres (30 feet)
pH:
5.5-6.5
GROWTH TYPE:
Deciduous.
WATER REQUIREMENTS:
Low-Medium.
POLLINATION:
Pollinated by Bees, Butterflies, and in America, hummingbirds.
MATURITY:
4-5 years.
GERMINATION RATES:
50-65%
GERMINATION TIME:
Soak – 48 hours
Warm Stratification – 10-12 weeks
Cold Stratification – 3 months and then 6-8 weeks germination.
GERMINATION DIFFICULTY:
Medium to Hard. Cold stratification & patience required.
SEEDS PER GRAM:
Approximately 140
MEDICINAL QUALITIES:
Yes.
WEED POTENTIAL:
No.
EDIBLE:
Yes.
SEED STORAGE & VIABILITY:
Cold Storage at 4°C (Fridge) up to 3 years.
FACTS ABOUT SAMBUCUS CAERULEA ( Blue Elderberry )
The Latin word Sambucus comes from the Greek word ‘sambuce’ which refers to an ancient wind instrument. This is in reference to the removal of pith from the twigs which makes whistles.
Wood from the Blue Elderberry shrub is used to make musical instruments such as flutes, clappers, and small whistles. The soft wood is used as a spindle to help make a fire by friction. Bark was used to produce a remedy for fever and the stems and berries can be used to make a dye.
