Sambucus canadensis, the American black elderberry, Canada elderberry, or common elderberry, is a New World species of elderberry that forms a shrub primarily in temperate regions.
Most parts of the plant are toxic with cyanogenic glycosides, but the ripe berries can be cooked for food use with the seeds removed.
Description
It is a deciduous suckering shrub growing to 6 metres (20 feet) tall. The leaves are arranged in opposite pairs, pinnate with five to eleven leaflets, the leaflets averaging 10 centimetres (4 inches) long and 4 cm broad.
In summer, it bears large corymbs, 20–30 cm or 8–12 in diameter, of white flowers above the foliage, the individual flowers
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Foliage
Flowers
Fruits
Taxonomy
It is closely related to the European Sambucus nigra. Some authors treat it as conspecific, under the name Sambucus nigra subsp. canadensis.
The genus name comes from the Greek word sambuce, an ancient wind instrument, in reference to the removal of pith from the twigs of this and other species to make whistles.
Etymology
The genus name comes from the Greek word sambuce, an ancient wind instrument, in reference to the removal of pith from the twigs of this and other species to make whistles.
Distribution and habitat
The species is native to a large area of North America east of the Rocky Mountains, south throughout the mainland Americas to Bolivia. It is considered introduced in the Caribbean, Europe, Africa, and Asia.
S. canadensis is primarily found in habitat types such as marshes, swamps, and open woodland floodplains, among others. It grows in full sun to partial shade and can tolerate moist. sandy to clay soil with a medium pH.
Toxicity
Inedible parts of the plant, such as the leaves, stems, roots, seeds and unripe fruits, can be toxic due to the presence of cyanogenic glycosides and alkaloids.
