AMERICAN ELDERBERRY
File Size: 108 KB
 
Sambucus nigra  L.  var. canadensis  (L. ) Bolli
[=Sambucus canadensis L.]
Riley County, Kansas
Perennial
Height: 3 - 10 feet
Family: Caprifoliaceae - Honeysuckle Family
Flowering Period:   May, June, July
Stems: Erect, usually several, glabrous, somewhat waxy; branches yellowish brown, pith white when young.
Leaves: Opposite, stalks 2-3.5 inches long, odd-pinnately compound; leaflets 5-9, broadly lanceolate to elliptic, 2-5 inches long, 1-2.75 inches wide, glabrous and dark green above, sometimes pubescent and pale green below; margins toothed; tips tapering to points.
Inflorescences: Rounded or flat-topped clusters, to 12 inches wide, terminal.
Flowers: 5-parted; calyx lobes minute or absent; corollas tiny, about 1/5 inch wide, creamy white; stamens 5, filaments white, anthers pale yellow.
Fruits: Berry-like, juicy, about 1/4 inch in diameter, glabrous, dark purple, in drooping clusters; seeds 3-5, nut-like, yellowish.
Habitat: Moist woodlands, thickets, roadsides, stream banks, and ditches.
Distribution: Throughout except southwest corner of Kansas.
Toxicity: The leaves of elderberry are poisonous to cattle and sheep.
Uses: The berries are a good source of vitamin C and can be eaten raw, cooked, or dried. Juice from the fruits can be made into jelly or wine. Native Americans used elderberry to treat colds, fevers, headaches, indigestion, and rheumatism.
Comments: Branching shrub. Individual elderberry plants generally live only 3-5 years, but new plants continually arise from the rootstock.

Elderberry flowers
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Elderberry flowers
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Elderberry
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Elderberry leaf
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Elderberry
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Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas
Elderberry leaf
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Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas
Elderberry infloresence
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Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas
Elderberry fruiting
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Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas
Elderberry bud
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Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas
Elderberry bud and leaf scar
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Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas
Elderberry stem
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Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas