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Black Elderberry | Sambucus Black Lace
Liquorice foliage with pink sherbet umbels
Grown by John
South Downs National Park
The highlights
- Dramatic lacy, almost black foliage with pink scented blooms
- Plant in a mixed border or as attractive hedging
- Grows to 3m x 2m
- RHS Award of Garden Merit winner
Description
- A large deciduous perennial which can be pruned to keep as a shrub or allowed to grow into a tree
- Darkest purple, almost black lacy foliage with pale pink, lemon-scented flowers from May to June
- Best grown in full sun for the darkest colour, this is a versatile plant which can be used as a single specimen or for hedging and screening
- Can grow up to 3m tall unless pruned
- The flowers and berries are edible (although the foliage is not). The berries attract birds and can also be used to make wine
- RHS Award of Garden Merit winner
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What To Expect
Supplied as:
Height on arrival:
Eventual height:
Eventual spread:
Time to first crop:
Flower colour:
Habit:
Hardiness:
Rootstock:
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How To Grow
Good pest and disease resistance
Can be affected by aphids. Pick these off by hand and spray the area with soapy water. In rare cases, can suffer from Verticillium Wilt. This causes yellowing and shrivelling of the lower leaves, and some or all of the plant suddenly wilts, especially in hot weather, and brown or black streaks in the tissue under the bark. Where the disease is confirmed, take care not to spread potentially infected soil around, remove the infected plant with as much root system as possible and destroy. Consider grassing over the area for at least fifteen years, or plant a resistant replacement.
Full sun to partial shade
Grow in full sun (at least 6 hours daily) for the best colour.
Any moist, well-drained soil
Sambucus does well in any moist, well-drained soil. If your soil is particularly clay-heavy and/or often becomes waterlogged then you can improve the drainage by adding in plenty of organic matter such as garden compost as well as some perlite or gravel.
Prune lightly
Pruning Group 1 - Will tolerate hard pruning to restrict the size; can be maintained as a small shrub if desired. Remove diseased, damaged, congested or crossing shoots. Shoots that are growing in unwanted directions can also be pruned out.
Planting Calendar
- Best time to plant
- Harvest
- Flower
South Downs National Park
Meet John
110 years' expertise free with every plant
Straight from the capable hands of our shrub specialist John to your garden, you can be sure that each bush, hedge and plant is grown to last. Nurtured in the fields of the South Downs and professionally pruned for the best shape, these hardy feature plants will be adding structure, colour and variety to your garden for many years to come.
What customers say about us
We do our best to provide you the best experience ever
Growing with Roots
Good to know
Our plants are grown in the UK
Specialist UK growers we know and trust grow your plants the traditional way, with organic fertiliser and biological pest control. They pick only the healthiest plants for you, professionally pruning them so that they’ll grow strong and well shaped.
Our plants are delivered overnight
Your plants are sent to you fresh from the field in our plastic free box that’s specially designed to hold them tight, then securely delivered by specialist plant couriers - straight from the grower to your garden within 24 hours.
We're here to help at every step
We want your plants to have a long and healthy life. Expect easy-to-follow grow guides and videos devised by our team of experts.
Perfect plants, guaranteed
We’re confident that you’ll be delighted with your new plants. Need help? Alice and her team are here to guarantee you’re perfectly happy.
Learn from our experts
How to Design a Flower Bed
Digging deep to answer your questions
How do I know I'm getting quality plants?
All of our plants are grown in specialist nurseries with the highest standards of plant care and sustainability. We guarantee you'll love them as much as we do! Don't just take our word for it - we've got thousands of great reviews on Trustpilot.
When will I get my plants?
The delivery timescale for each plant is on the web page (near the 'add to basket's button). You'll receive a dispatch email with an exact delivery date once your plants are on their way, so you can get the garden ready.
How will my plants be packed and delivered?
We send all of our orders through a courier network designed to handle plants. Specialist equipment ensures that no plants will be damaged during the packing process and every order is carefully finished and checked by plant-loving humans. Your plants will arrive in the most sustainable packaging possible with minimal to no plastic used.
Where do you deliver?
We deliver to anywhere in Mainland UK for our standard delivery cost. We are able to deliver most plants to Highlands and non UK mainland however this will be at an additional cost. This will be calculated at the checkout. Please note, deliveries to these locations will take longer. Unfortunately, we are not able to deliver to Northern Ireland at present.
Ask the grower
One of our trusted growers will get back to you via email within 24 hours
What customers say about us
We do our best to provide you the best experience ever
Excellent delivery and service
Well, the delivery was spot on, the tree looks healthy enough for a sleeping plant, although at the moment most of the branches are on one side of the trunk which in itself is bent banana-style. quite wonky. One can only hope that it grows into a fruitful plant with some character?
30 January
Nice sized tree in good condition
Time will tell on the quality of the product (bare-root apple trees), but the stems that arrived seemed in great condition and very well packaged so no damage in transit. Looking forward to Spring!
Ange
Appears v healthy
Very happy with purchase
Ms Arlene Bocking
Lovely tree
So happy with my purchase of my Braeburn Hillwell apple tree from Roots Plants. It arrived promptly, well packaged and in a good, healthy condition. I soaked it for an hour before planting and it's doing well. Looking forward to our home grown apples, in time.
Ms Arlene Bocking
It has picked up now and is growing well
It arrived in a heat wave and looked a little bit sorry for itself when planted out but it has picked up now and is growing well.
David Osborne
Good service all round
Arrived on time as the seller said it would and the courier gave me a time slot to track my parcel. It came well packaged and was of good quality for this time of year. It looks a good and healthy tree and will be planted up in a few weeks after the ground has been prepared. I’m pleased with my purchase.
Helen