I agree on sambucas nigra as I've got two the same. They are lovely plants. You can either cut them down hard each year for spectacular foliage or lightly prune if you want the pinkish flowers. Mine looked fabulous one year with the pale pink foxgloves underneath and grey/white lychnis coronia.
It's only the elder flowers that are edible - either steeped to make elderflower cordial or used in jellies I think?
If you make elderberry cordial with the berries, it will be the prettiest pink colour. Looks great with lemonade or fizzy water if you want a nice drink for an occasion, that is not alcoholic.
If you keep the cordial long enough, it will become slightly alcoholic, and is still nice diluted as before. I think the black elderberries do not flower, and thus fruit, quite as generously as the plain ones - but they are lovely with that dark serrated foliage.
Sambucus respond well to being cut hard back - some people coppice them every two or three years to keep them a reasonable size and maintain the quality of the foliage. They flower on the previous year's wood so you may not get much fruit this year, but the following year should be better. They respond well to a good scattering of chicken manure pellets
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
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I agree on sambucas nigra as I've got two the same. They are lovely plants. You can either cut them down hard each year for spectacular foliage or lightly prune if you want the pinkish flowers. Mine looked fabulous one year with the pale pink foxgloves underneath and grey/white lychnis coronia.
It's only the elder flowers that are edible - either steeped to make elderflower cordial or used in jellies I think?
Or you can make elderflower wine with the flowers and elderberry wine with the fruits
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Yes, I thought it was a purple leaved elderberry before I saw the other comments.
If you make elderberry cordial with the berries, it will be the prettiest pink colour. Looks great with lemonade or fizzy water if you want a nice drink for an occasion, that is not alcoholic.
If you keep the cordial long enough, it will become slightly alcoholic, and is still nice diluted as before. I think the black elderberries do not flower, and thus fruit, quite as generously as the plain ones - but they are lovely with that dark serrated foliage.
Definitely a Sambucus Nigra, and a specimen I'll be buying when one turns up in the garden centre!
Like strawberry daiquiri mmm alcohol. Haha
What do you think the chances of this re growing? It's basically a HEAVY prune
Sambucus respond well to being cut hard back - some people coppice them every two or three years to keep them a reasonable size and maintain the quality of the foliage. They flower on the previous year's wood so you may not get much fruit this year, but the following year should be better. They respond well to a good scattering of chicken manure pellets
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
It is 'black beauty' rather than 'black lace' going by the leaves.