Sambucus nigra

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Sambucus nigra
Sambucus nigra 004.jpg
Shrub in flower
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Dipsacales
Family: Adoxaceae
Genus: Sambucus
Species:
S. nigra
Binomial name
Sambucus nigra
L.
Sambucus nigra range.svg
Distribution in Europe
Sambucus nigra canadensis & cerulea range map 2.png
Natural range of North American subspecies: S. cerulea (dark/light blue) and S. canadensis (green/red)

Sambucus nigra is a species complex of flowering plants in the family Adoxaceae native to most of Europe. [1] Common names include elder, elderberry, black elder, European elder, European elderberry, and European black elderberry. [2] [3] It grows in a variety of conditions including both wet and dry fertile soils, primarily in sunny locations. The plant is widely grown as an ornamental shrub or small tree. Both the flowers and the berries have a long tradition of culinary use, primarily for cordial and wine. [4]

Contents

Although elderberry is commonly used in dietary supplements and traditional medicine, there is no scientific evidence that it provides any benefit for maintaining health or treating diseases. [5]

Description

Elderberry is a deciduous shrub or small tree growing to 6 metres (20 ft) tall and wide, [4] rarely reaching 10 m (33 ft) tall. The bark, light gray when young, changes to a coarse gray outer bark with lengthwise furrowing, lenticels prominent. [6] The leaves are arranged in opposite pairs, 10–30 centimetres (4–12 inches) long, pinnate with five to seven (rarely nine) leaflets, the leaflets 5–12 cm (2–4+3⁄4 in) long and 3–5 cm (1+1⁄4–2 in) broad, with a serrated margin. The young stems are hollow. [7]

The hermaphroditic flowers have five stamens, [8] which are borne in large, flat corymbs 10–25 cm in diameter in late spring to mid-summer. The individual flowers are ivory white, 5–6 millimetres (3⁄16–1⁄4 in) in diameter, with five petals, and are pollinated by flies.

The fruit is a glossy, dark purple to black berry 3–5 mm diameter, produced in drooping clusters in late autumn. [4] The dark color of elderberry fruit occurs from its rich phenolic content, particularly from anthocyanins. [9]

Taxonomy

Subspecies

There are several other closely related species, native to Asia and North America, which are similar, and sometimes treated as subspecies of Sambucus nigra, including S. nigra subsp. canadensis [10] and S. nigra subsp. cerulea. [11]

Etymology

The Latin specific epithet nigra means "black", and refers to the deeply dark colour of the berries. [12] The English term for the tree is not believed to come from the word "old", but from the Anglo Saxon æld, meaning fire, because the hollow stems of the branches were used as bellows to blow air into a fire. [13]

Distribution and habitat

Sambucus nigra is native to Europe as far east as Turkey. [14] It is native in, and common throughout, the British Isles. [15] It has been introduced to parts of most other continents of the world. [14]

Hedges, waste-ground roadsides, and woods are the typical habitats for the species. [8] S. nigra is recorded as very common in Ireland in hedges as scrub in woods. [16] [17]

Ecology

Hyphodontia sambuci Eglinton.JPG
Elder whitewash fungus
Auricularia auricula-judae Eglinton.JPG
Jelly ear fungus

Like other elderberries, Sambucus nigra is subject to elder whitewash fungus and jelly ear fungus. Strong-scented flowers in wild populations of S. nigra attract numerous, minute flower thrips which may contribute to the transfer of pollen between inflorescences. [18]

Wildlife value

Elder rates as fair to good forage for animals such as mule deer, elk, sheep, and small birds. The fruit are an important food for many fruit-eating birds, notably blackcaps. Ripe elderberries are a favorite food for migrating band-tailed pigeons in northern California, which may sometimes strip an entire bush in a short time. The species provides good habitat for large and small mammals, [19] as well as nesting habitat for many birds, including hummingbirds, warblers, and vireos. It is also a larval host to the spring azure. [20]

Except for the flowers and ripe berries (but including the ripe seeds), all parts of the plant are poisonous to mammals, containing the cyanogenic glycoside sambunigrin (C14H17NO6, CAS number 99-19-4). [21] The bark contains calcium oxalate crystals.[ citation needed ]

Cultivation

It is a very common feature of hedgerows and scrubland in Britain and northern Europe.

Some selections and cultivars have variegated or coloured leaves and other distinctive qualities, and are grown as ornamental plants. S. nigra f. porphyrophylla has dark maroon or black leaves, and pale pink flowers.

The following cultivars have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit: [22]

A purple, cut-leafed elder variety with pale pink flowers PurpleLacyElderberryflowers.jpg
A purple, cut-leafed elder variety with pale pink flowers

Toxicity

Components of the elderberry plant, including its fruit, contain diverse phytochemicals, such as alkaloids, lectins, and cyanogenic glycosides, which may be toxic if consumed raw. [9] The seeds and all green parts of the plant contain cyanogenic glycosides. [5] Consumption of berries, leaves, bark or stems, if not properly prepared, may cause nausea, vomiting, and severe diarrhea. [5] [9] [27] Elderberry plant constituents or products should not be consumed during pregnancy or by people with allergies or gastrointestinal diseases. [9] [27] Elderberry products may cause adverse effects when used with prescription drugs. [9] [27]

Uses

The dark blue or purple berries are mildly poisonous in their raw state, but are edible after cooking. [5] [28] They can be used to make jam, jelly, [28] chutney, and Pontack sauce. In Scandinavia and Germany, soup made from the elderberry (e.g. the German Fliederbeersuppe) is a traditional meal. [29]

Commonly, the flowerheads are used in infusions, giving a drink in Northern Europe and the Balkans. These drinks are sold commercially as elderflower cordial or elderflower pressé . [30] In Europe, the flowers are made into a syrup or cordial (in Romanian: Socată, in Swedish: fläder(blom)saft, in Danish: hyldeblomstsaft / hyldedrik), which is diluted with water before drinking. The popularity of this traditional drink recently has encouraged some commercial soft drink producers to introduce elderflower-flavoured drinks (Fanta Shokata, Freaky Fläder). The flowers also may be dipped into a light batter and then fried to make elderflower fritters. [31]

The berries may be made into elderberry wine. [28] In Hungary, an elderberry brandy is made that requires 50 kilograms of fruit to produce 1  litre of brandy. In south-western Sweden, it is traditional to make a snaps liqueur flavoured with elderflower. Elderflowers are used in liqueurs such as St-Germain, and in a mildly alcoholic sparkling elderflower 'champagne', although a more alcoholic home-made version can be made. In Beerse, Belgium, a variety of jenever called beers vlierke is made from the berries.[ citation needed ]

Traditional medicine

This plant is used in traditional medicine by native peoples and herbalists. [5] [32] Extracts of the flowers and fruits are used for cold and flu symptoms, [5] [9] although there is no high-quality clinical evidence that it is effective for treating any disease. [5] [9]

Related Research Articles

<i>Sambucus</i> Genus of flowering plants

Sambucus is a genus of flowering plants in the family Adoxaceae. The various species are commonly referred to as elder, elderflower or elderberry.

<i>Prunus laurocerasus</i> Species of plant

Prunus laurocerasus, also known as cherry laurel, common laurel and sometimes English laurel in North America, is an evergreen species of cherry (Prunus), native to regions bordering the Black Sea in southwestern Asia and southeastern Europe, from Albania and Bulgaria east through Turkey to the Caucasus Mountains and northern Iran.

<i>Pyracantha</i> Genus of shrubs

Pyracantha is a genus of large, thorny evergreen shrubs in the family Rosaceae, with common names firethorn or pyracantha. They are native to an area extending from Southwest Europe east to Southeast Asia. They resemble and are related to Cotoneaster, but have serrated leaf margins and numerous thorns.

<i>Populus nigra</i> Species of plant

Populus nigra, the black poplar, is a species of cottonwood poplar, the type species of section Aigeiros of the genus Populus, native to Europe, southwest and central Asia, and northwest Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adoxaceae</span> Family of plants

Adoxaceae, commonly known as moschatel family, is a small family of flowering plants in the order Dipsacales, now consisting of five genera and about 150–200 species. They are characterised by opposite toothed leaves, small five- or, more rarely, four-petalled flowers in cymose inflorescences, and the fruit being a drupe. They are thus similar to many Cornaceae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Socată</span> Romanian soft drink

Socată or suc de soc is a traditional Romanian soft drink made from the flowers of the European elder shrub, Sambucus nigra. It may be non-alcoholic or, usually, low-alcoholic, and can be carbonated or non-carbonated, depending on the fermentation type and duration. It is produced by the natural fermentation of elder flowers in a lemon and sugar or (traditionally) honey solution. Raisins, lemon or lime slices and various spices may be added. Some newer variations substitute raisins or dates for sugar or honey, and limes instead of lemons as well as additional spices such as saffron or ginger may be used. Yeast and/or rice grains can be added to intensify alcoholic fermentation, if desired. Socată is popular throughout Southeast Europe, where it is also known as fermentirana zova.

<i>Prunus serotina</i> Species of tree

Prunus serotina, commonly called black cherry, wild black cherry, rum cherry, or mountain black cherry, is a deciduous tree or shrub in the rose family Rosaceae. Despite being called black cherry, it is not very closely related to the commonly cultivated cherries such as sweet cherry, sour cherry and Japanese flowering cherries which belong to Prunus subg. Cerasus. Instead, P. serotina belongs to Prunus subg. Padus, a subgenus also including Eurasian bird cherry and chokecherry. The species is widespread and common in North America and South America.

<i>Sambucus ebulus</i> Species of flowering plant

Sambucus ebulus, also known as danewort, dane weed, danesblood, dwarf elder or European dwarf elder, walewort, dwarf elderberry, elderwort and blood hilder, is a herbaceous species of elder, native to southern and central Europe and southwest Asia. The species is a well-established archaeophyte in much of the UK, and is also reportedly naturalized in parts of North America.

<i>Viburnum opulus</i> Species of flowering plant

Viburnum opulus, the guelder-rose or guelder rose is a species of flowering plant in the family Adoxaceae native to Europe, northern Africa and central Asia.

<i>Sambucus canadensis</i> Species of plant

Sambucus canadensis, the American black elderberry, Canada elderberry, or common elderberry, is a species of elderberry native to a large area of North America east of the Rocky Mountains, south to Bolivia. It grows in a variety of conditions including both wet and dry soils, primarily in sunny locations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elderflower cordial</span> A kind of soft drink

Elderflower cordial is a soft drink made largely from a refined sugar and water solution and uses the flowers of the European elder. Historically, the cordial was popular in Northwestern Europe where it has a Victorian heritage. However, versions of an elderflower cordial recipe can be traced to Roman times. In the 21st century, it is consumed in many countries of Europe where people still make it in the traditional way. In some countries, the drink can be found as an aromatic syrup, sold as a concentrated squash that is mixed with still or sparkling water. Elderflower pressé is a premixed form of this.

<i>Sambucus racemosa</i> Species of plant

Sambucus racemosa is a species of elderberry known by the common names red elderberry and red-berried elder.

<i>Myrtus communis</i> Species of flowering plant

Myrtus communis, the common myrtle or true myrtle, is a species of flowering plant in the myrtle family Myrtaceae. It is an evergreen shrub native to southern Europe, North Africa, Western Asia, Macaronesia, and the Indian Subcontinent, and also cultivated.

<i>Prunus avium</i> Species of flowering plant in the rose family Rosaceae

Prunus avium, commonly called wild cherry, sweet cherry or gean is a species of cherry, a flowering plant in the rose family, Rosaceae. It is native to Europe, Anatolia, Maghreb, and Western Asia, from the British Isles south to Morocco and Tunisia, north to the Trondheimsfjord region in Norway and east to the Caucasus and northern Iran, with a small isolated population in the western Himalaya. The species is widely cultivated in other regions and has become naturalized in North America, New Zealand and Australia.

<i>Sambucus cerulea</i> Species of tree

Sambucus cerulea or Sambucus nigra ssp. cerulea, with the common names blue elderberry and blue elder, is a coarse textured shrub species of elder in the family Adoxaceae.

<i>Iris sambucina</i> Species of plant

Iris sambucina, the elder scented iris, is a plant species in the genus Iris, it is also in the subgenus Iris. It is a rhizomatous perennial, from southern and central Europe. It has green, curved or sword-like leaves, tall round stem, multiple flowers in shades from brown violet, or brown-purple, to purple-violet, blue violet, mauve, and to purple. The large flowers are fragrant, with the scent of elderflowers, hence the name. It was first considered a separate species, then it was classified as a synonym of Iris germanica, before being classified as a separate species again, but with a hybrid origin from Iris pallida and Iris variegata. It is sometimes cultivated as an ornamental plant in temperate regions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elderflower pressé</span> Soft drink

Elderflower pressé is a sweetened, carbonated soft drink. It is made from elderflowers, the flowers of the European elderberry, Sambucus nigra, which are also used to make elderflower cordial, or a synthetic equivalent. Other ingredients will include lemons and sweetener.

<i>Poliothyrsis</i> Genus of plants

Poliothyrsis is a monotypic genus of flowering plants belonging to the willow family Salicaceae. The single arborescent species is Poliothyrsis sinensis, Chinese common name: 山拐枣 shān guǎi zǎo English common name: Chinese pearl-bloom tree

<i>Geist</i> (liquor) Distilled beverage

Geist is a distilled beverage obtained by maceration of unfermented fruit or other raw materials in neutral spirits, followed by distillation. This differs from fruit brandy, where the alcohol comes from fermenting the fruit's naturally occurring sugars. As such, geist can be made from a much wider range of materials, as it is not limited to fruits with sufficient fermentable sugars.

<i>Epitrimerus trilobus</i> Species of mite

Epitrimerus trilobus is a gall mite in the family Eriophyidae, found in Europe. The mites feed on the leaves of elder (Sambucus species), causing abnormal plant growths known as galls. The mite was described by the Austrian zoologist, Alfred Nalepa in 1891.

References

  1. ↑ "Flora Europaea Search Results". Rbg-web2.rbge.org.uk. Retrieved 13 October 2017.
  2. ↑ "Sambucus nigra". Integrated Taxonomic Information System.
  3. ↑ "Plants profile for Sambucus nigra L. (black elderberry)". Natural Resources Conservation Service, US Department of Agriculture. 2023. Retrieved 13 June 2023.
  4. 1 2 3 RHS A-Z encyclopedia of garden plants. United Michael and Vikram: Dorling Kindersley. 2008. ISBN   978-1405332965.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "European elder". National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, US National Library of Medicine. 1 August 2020. Retrieved 4 September 2021.
  6. ↑ Clapham, A.R., Tutin, T.G. and Warburg, E.F. 1968 Excursion Flora of the British Isles Second Edition Cambridge. ISBN   0-521-04656-4
  7. ↑ Vedel, H. and Lange, J. 1971. Trees and Bushes in Wood and Hedgerow. p. 196. Methuen and Co. Ltd. ISBN   0416-61780-8
  8. 1 2 Parnell, J. and Curtis, T. 2012. Webb's An Irish Flora. Cork University Press. ISBN   978-185918-4783
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Elderberry". Drugs.com. 4 August 2021. Retrieved 4 September 2021.
  10. ↑ "Sambucus mexicana". Calflora. Retrieved 2012-07-16.
  11. ↑ "Sambucus nigra ssp. caerulea". Calflora. Retrieved 2012-07-16.
  12. ↑ Harrison, Lorraine (2012). RHS Latin for Gardeners. United Kingdom: Mitchell Beazley. ISBN   978-1845337315.
  13. ↑ "Elder (Sambucus nigra) - British trees -". Woodland Trust. Retrieved 3 November 2017.
  14. 1 2 "Sambucus nigra L." Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  15. ↑ "Sambucus nigra". Online Atlas of the British and Irish Flora. Biological Records Centre and Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. Archived from the original on 2022-02-11. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
  16. ↑ Hackney, P. 1992. Stewarts and Corry's Flora of the North-east of Ireland. Institute of Irish Studies The Queen's University of Belfast. ISBN   0 85389 446 9(HB)
  17. ↑ Webb, D.A., Parnell, J. and Doogue, D. 1996. An Irish Flora. Dundalgan Press Ltd, Dundalk. ISBN   0-85221-131-7
  18. ↑ Scott-Brown, A.S.; Arnold, S.E.J.; Kite, G.C.; Farrell, I.; Farman, D.I.; Collins, D.W.; Stevenson, P.C. (2019). "Mechanisms in mutualisms: A chemically mediated thrips pollination strategy in common elder" (PDF). Planta. 250 (1): 367–379. Bibcode:2019Plant.250..367S. doi: 10.1007/s00425-019-03176-5 . PMID   31069523. S2CID   253886497.
  19. ↑ "Sambucus nigra subsp. cerulea". Fs.fed.us. Archived from the original on 2017-05-28. Retrieved 13 October 2017.
  20. ↑ The Xerces Society (2016), Gardening for Butterflies: How You Can Attract and Protect Beautiful, Beneficial Insects, Timber Press.
  21. ↑ Campa C, Schmitt-Kopplin P, Cataldi TR, Bufo SA, Freitag D, Kettrup A (2000). "Analysis of cyanogenic glycosides by micellar capillary electrophoresis". Journal of Chromatography B . 739 (1): 95–100. doi:10.1016/S0378-4347(99)00375-8. PMID   10744317.
  22. ↑ "AGM Plants - Ornamental" (PDF). Royal Horticultural Society. July 2017. p. 95. Retrieved 21 October 2018.
  23. ↑ "Sambucus nigra f. laciniata / RHS Gardening". Apps.rhs.org.uk. Retrieved 2021-03-06.
  24. ↑ "RHS Plantfinder - Sambucus nigra 'Eva'" . Retrieved 21 October 2018.
  25. ↑ ""Sambucus" 'Black Lace'". RHS. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  26. ↑ "Sambucus nigra f. porphyrophylla 'Gerda'". Apps.rhs.org.uk. Retrieved 2021-03-06.
  27. 1 2 3 "Elderberry". Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. 2020. Retrieved 11 July 2020.
  28. 1 2 3 Fagan, Damian (2019). Wildflowers of Oregon: A Field Guide to Over 400 Wildflowers, Trees, and Shrubs of the Coast, Cascades, and High Desert. Guilford, CT: FalconGuides. p. 16. ISBN   978-1-4930-3633-2. OCLC   1073035766.
  29. ↑ Jørgensen, Ulla; Hansen, Merete; Christensen, Lars P.; Jensen, Karina; Kaack, Karl (2000-05-12). "Olfactory and Quantitative Analysis of Aroma Compounds in Elder Flower (Sambucus nigra L.) Drink Processed from Five Cultivars". Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. 48 (6): 2376–2383. doi:10.1021/jf000005f. ISSN   0021-8561. PMID   10888553.
  30. ↑ Kikbracken, J. 1995. Easy way guide Trees. Larousse.
  31. ↑ Mabey, Richard (2012). Food for free. London: Collins. p. 83. ISBN   978-0-00-743847-1. OCLC   761378530.
  32. ↑ "Sambucus nigra: Elderberry - European Elder, Black elderberry, American black elderberry, Blue elderberry". Plants for a Future. Retrieved 13 October 2017.

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