Choosing Elderberry Cultivars

Choosing the right elderberry cultivar for your farm is a critical decision. Join University of Missouri Extension horticulturist Patrick Byers for a discussion of elderberry cultivars suitable for Missouri. #2xAg2030 #ExtendMU

[@ReLockCo]

This was incredibly informative!!! Thank you sir!!!

[@trumplostlol3007]

Don't choose any particular cultivar. Plant everything. It is survival of the fittest. Let them grow. The survivor determines what you should plant.

[@Appophust]

I live in Cape Fair. I bought Wyldewood and Bob Gordon, but they didn't do that well in my honest opinion. I eventually just collected cuttings from local trees. I have a variety that produces massive clusters the size of dinner plates, and 2 other varieties that produce nearly as well. I'm also experimenting with a much shorter plant that grew wild in my yard. It only got to about 3 feet after a full year of growth. It also produces much smaller clusters, and the berries are rather tiny as well.

[@robinpickelsimer7229]

Excellent information and pictures are fantastic!

[@patrickbyers6929]

Thanks!

[@chanimarie6753]

As matter of fact, just yesterday I recieved my plant order from Richters in Ontario, Canada amd 2 elder erry were invluded-Wyldewood and Bob Gordon (which is the cultivar yall produced with the inverted berries). Hoping for the best tgis summer! I also have a sambucus nigra; they're so beautiful. Such aesthetician appeal!

[@nonameandplants6130]

I can't wait to get one

[@MA-jx6yq]

Great info! Thx...

[@garden4healing414]

Great info Thanks

[@p.h.m.kletersteeg117]

The Haidegg serie is excellent; each bundle of berries al;most 1kg. Haideg 25 contains more sugar than grapes; ideal for wine, marmelade, brandy, lemonade. The haidegg serie is devellopped in Austria; in Germany England, Austria Elder bushes are used many times; in other european countries: less. There is also a mountain elder, with red berries. One elder is pure toxic; the berries, blossom, braches, roots, leaves: all is toxic. Grows one meter high; berries on top, facing the sky. Berries, leaves were used in medieval period as colouring materials. In winter it disappears totally; it does not form any wood.

[@ChuckKnightTaylor]

Thanks Patrick for sharing your knowledge. I’ve decided to create a small hedge/screen on the edge of my property. I’ve purchased two Yorks and one Nova elderberry bushes as I live in New England. Can you recommend a spacing to crest a nice hedge/screen? Thank you!!

[@landi76]

*Haschenberg Holunder* from Austria is be best one

[@DoubleDChicksNStuffHomestead]

I have elderberry but not sure what type they are. What is your recommendation for South Carolina? 🌻NEW SUBSCRIBER 🌻

[@dananachum4356]

One of our elderberry plants has flower heads that are 15 in across. Much larger than any of the other elderberries that we have. The berries are larger also. I just started picking them today and just cannot believe how many berries are on each flower head. Is this a particular type of elderberry or did we just get lucky?

[@vmcshannon]

I have two white berry elderberry.supposed to be from Germany. Do you know anything about them?

[@bozenastankiewicz7611]

I have found something what smells , and looks like elderberry but flowers were not is clusters, they did not look like a umbrella. It was a wild bush, I thought maybe it is just a young bush

[@johnjones1534]

You didn't get an answer two years ago, but it may be poke weed. Looks quite different once you are familiar with both elderberry and poke, but can fool you if inexperienced. Google pictures of pokeweed berries.

[@richardmang2558]

I am planting mail order elderberries (Adams 2, Bob Gordon, Pocahontas, Ranch, Wyldewood) in southern California just north of San Diego. Sunset garden zone 23. USDA Hardiness zone 9. But now I read these are not recommended for this climate zone and probably will not survive long term due to a lack of icy cold winters needed for good dormancy. I have a 3 year old wild elderberry that is thriving next to an irrigated avocado tree, I think it is a Blue Mexican (S. Mexicana). I am not sure how it started growing here, whether from a bird poop or from cuttings brought in as mulch/wood chips. But it is thriving and produces berries. I am wondering if the mail order cultivars would survive long term year to year if they were grafted onto the S. Mexicana rootstock? Is anyone aware of this being done?

[@Cleangrowersusa]

Those grow wild all over my property. The cow's like the leaves and will only eat the berries if they are all the way ripe.

[@searose6192]

Is there anywhere I can get official safety tips for processing elderberries (making jams and syrup, tonic, tincture, juice, flower fritters, winde, elderflower liquor etc)? I can't find anything on the usda website (accept about canning) and haven't had luck yet looking at university extension info...but I am not expert at that. I just want to know how long the seeds and fruit have to be heated at boiling to be safe for consumption.

[@truthtalker4038]

go up to the search bar on youtube.. you will find many videos to choose from for all your needs and more

[@searose6192]

@@truthtalker4038 The thing is, I am hoping for an authoritative source...on KZbin it tends to be heaps of videos from novices who are braver than I am and wing it and then tell everyone to follow their lead. I'd like official info in order to be sure it's safe. If you know of an official source with a video about processing elderberries on KZbin, please share....I haven't found one myself.....I guess the algorithm doesn't want me to 😉

[@theresakoch3738]

20 minutes from what I’ve been seeing.

[@paulademichele1313]

Don't know if you've found an answer - but I found the info below. My great-grandmother, born in 1877, used berries from her native NE shrub all her life for pies and jams and four generations ate them including me. FYI for anyone asking this question: an online source says: "How long do you have to cook elderberries to be safe? Bring the herbs and water to a rolling boil over medium heat to 180 degrees. Reduce to a simmer, stir occasionally, and allow it to cook, uncovered, for at least 30 minutes and until halved. If the water cooks off too quickly, reduce the heat further and add more water so the herbs don't burn. Stems, leaves, and green unripe elderberries should be removed prior to heat processing."

[@searose6192]

Which cultivars hold up well to wet soil? And which grows tall most quickly? I have two black elderberries and am looking at getting a dozen or more to make a privacy border that still provides edible use.

[@patrickbyers6929]

Dear SeaRose: Most elderberries, while they prefer moist soil, will not thrive on soils that are consistently wet. Consider planting them on a raised bed or berm.

[@canetiberius7050]

Have you heard of Goldbeere Elderberry? It is European.