Sambucus racemosa - American red elder

American red elder (Sambucus racemosa) is a deciduous shrub native to North America, from British Columbia to Newfoundland and south to Georgia, Iowa, Colorado, and California, found in moist to wet soils along streams and in open woods. The leaves and stems are poisonous; the fruit is edible raw or cooked, though cooking is recommended since it may cause stomach upsets in some people raw.¹

Inputs

• Hardiness zone 4¹
• Hardiness zone 5¹
• Hardiness zone 6¹
• Hardiness zone 7¹
• Hardiness zone 8¹
• Full sun¹
• Semi-shade¹
• Moist soil¹

Outputs

• Human food¹
• Medicinal use¹

Type

• Shrub
• Deciduous
• Sambucus spp. - Elderberry

Footnotes

1. Sambucus racemosa | Plants for a Future ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹