Habitus

most often as a shrub, rarely a tree 8 - 10 m high
crown is dense irregular
bark is yellow-grey to light brown
bork is relatively deeply fissured into longitudinal strips, greyish to brownish-grey

Sambucus nigra (Black elder) - as a lower tree

Sambucus nigra (Black elder) - in the background white willow (Salix alba)

Buds

buds are opposite, 7-10 x 4-5 mm in size, cylindrical, pointed, semi-naked, only at the base covered with greenish to reddish-brown integumentary scales, between which green leaves protrude

Shoots

shoots are straight, relatively thick with many convex lenticels
the stem is large, white

Leaves (assimilation organs)

the leaves are compound - oddly pinnately composed of 2 - 3 pairs of individual leaves, 20 - 25 cm long
individual leaves are ovate to elongated round with a longer tip, 6 - 12 x 4 - 6 cm large, at the base they are entire marginal, only in the upper part irregularly coarsely serrate
the upper side of the leaves is darker green, the lower side is lighter and sparsely hairy on the veins

Sambucus nigra (Black elder) - underside

Sambucus nigra (Black elder) - single leaf (top side)

Sambucus nigra (Black elder) - single leaf (underside)

Sambucus nigra (Black elder) - compound leaf (upper side)

Flowers

the tree is monoecious, the flowers are bisexual, white, grouped into flat 10 - 20 cm wide five-armed terminal spikes
the flowers are strongly aromatic

Sambucus nigra (Black elder) - base of the five-armed terminal apex

Sambucus nigra (Black elder) - compound leaf (underside)

Fruits – seeds

the fruit is a spherical drupe, dark purple to black, 4 - 5 mm large
it contains two compressed, ovoid seeds, 2 - 4 mm large

Extension

originally almost in all of Europe
in Slovakia from the lowest altitudes and rises on average to 800 m above the sea level
it grows in deciduous forests on soils well supplied with nutrients and sufficiently moist, especially in floodplain forests and riparian stands
it is abundant in rubble mounds - wherever there is a higher humus content and where intensive nitrification takes place (an aerobic process in which nitrogenous substances are oxidized by bacteria, part of the transformation of nitrogenous substances in the soil)

Sambucus nigra (Black elder) - in a site with an intensive nitrification process

Sambucus nigra (Black elder) - at the edge of the forest (base of the slope) with a higher nutrient content

Ecology

it is partially shaded woody plant, demanding on soil nutrient content and soil moisture

Sambucus nigra (Black elder) - in the shade of the mother plant

Significance

it is a land reclamation tree
it is decorative with flowers, but also with leaf forms
flowers are used in medicine
it is fruit-bearing
it stands out for its high regrowth, which can also cause problems
pipes and “fujaras” are made from the wood of the trunks

From history

Sambucus nigra (Black elder) - Unsere Waldbäume, Sträucher und Zwergholzgewächse. Heidelberg, Carl Winter`s Universitätsbuchhandlung

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