Elder

How to plant it

General steps for this plant. Save a garden and these become specific to your location, soil and light.

1. Step 1When to plant

   Plant during November to March, whenever the ground is not frozen or waterlogged.

   Woody plants establish best planted while dormant, so roots grow before the first summer.

2. Step 2Where to put it

   Choose sun or shade — this plant tolerates both. Allow 3.5 m of room around it — mature spread is 3.5 m and mature height 3–5 m.

   Light in your garden is not answered, so this is the plant's own requirement.

3. Step 3Preparing the ground

   Dig a hole twice as wide as the root ball and no deeper, loosen the sides, and plant so the top of the root ball is level with the surrounding soil.

   Soil is not answered. This plant grows in average, moisture-retentive conditions.

4. Step 4Watering while it establishes

   Water thoroughly at planting (10–15 litres), then only when the top few centimetres of soil are dry, through the first full growing season, and dry spells in the second.

   Even a drought-tolerant plant (3/5 here) only becomes drought-tolerant once established.

5. Step 5Mulch

   Spread 5–7 cm of composted bark or garden compost around the plant, keeping it clear of the stem.

   Mulch cuts water loss and suppresses weeds through the first summer, when losses are most likely.

6. Step 6The first year

   Check it after strong wind and in long dry spells. Little else is needed.

   Maintenance level on the plant record is low.

7. Step 7What to watch for

   Raw berries and foliage are toxic. Toxicity: mild. Site it accordingly if children or pets use the space.

   Taken from the plant record and your measured climate figures, not from a general description.

Spacing: about 3.5 m apart — roughly 1 plant for every 10 m² if planted as a group.

Built by fixed rules from: Plant record for Elder (last reviewed 2026-06-01). Planting guide version gf-planting-1.0.0. Timings and volumes are practitioner estimates for planning, not a substitute for local nursery advice.

Status and jurisdiction

Native in United Kingdom (Great Britain).

Register consulted: GBIF Backbone Taxonomy distributions for Great Britain

Record review status: reviewed · last reviewed 2026-06-01 · plant data version gf-plants-2026.09.18. Status claims are never inferred from climate similarity, and growing figures are estimates pending expert review.

Verified botanical record

Accepted scientific name

Sambucus nigra L.

Family

Viburnaceae (Dipsacales)

Rank and status

species · accepted

GBIF record

Taxon 2888728

Recorded native range: Belgium, Brussels-Capital Region, Flanders, Flemish Region, Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, Portugal Continental, Walloon Region

Recorded as introduced in: Algeria, Argentina South, Azores, Açores, Baleares, Bangladesh, Bogotá, Bogotá, D.C., Brazil North, Brazil Northeast, Brazil South, Brazil Southeast and 40 further regions

Ranges are exactly as recorded in the GBIF source checklists and may be incomplete for widely cultivated species.