Black Lace™ (Sambucus nigra ‘Eva’ pp# 15,575)
The appeal of Black Lace is its unique black leaf color that sets it apart from all other plants. Plants with black leaves are few and far between, especially for the perennial garden. In the array of shrubs it is nearly non-existent. Not only does it portray this characteristic, but many others. Its fine texture and lacy look is comparable to that of a Japanese Maple. For the novice gardener, it would be easy to get them confused. One way that it can be distinguished is the fact that Black Lace has beautiful pink blooms in early Spring & Summer. Then in the Fall it produces dark black berries that can be used for making wine and jam or for attracting wildlife. It is also multifunctional as a stand alone accent plant, mixed in a perennial and annual border, container gardening or as a hedge. It is exceptionally hardy and will do well from Central Minnesota to North Carolina and west to California (Zones 4 to 7).
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Hi--I just bought one of these. Does it die back to the ground, or will it be like a woody shrub in the winter? I'm in SE MI, zone 5b/6a.
ReplyDeleteCarol
Black lace - Sambucus nigra can behave like a perennial in colder climates. It is completely root hardy but the top may die back in the winter. It is a fast growing plant so it will quickly regrow to form an attractive plant. In Zone 5 it behaves like a shrub and does not die back. It does however benefit from pruning after flowering.
ReplyDeleteI normally recommend that people pinch the growing tips to increase branching when the plant is young. This will reduce flowering in the first year but you will have a nicer, bushier plant.
I am planning on buying Black lace for containers. I live in the Upper Peninsula of MI (Zone 4-5). How should I deal with these in the snowy, cold winters? I was thinking of putting them in an unheated storage shed to force dormancy but to protect from snow.
ReplyDeleteDoes this plant have any of the medicinal properties of regular elderberry?
ReplyDeleteBlack Lace Elderberry is a selection of Sambucus nigra thus it has all the medicinal qualities as the species.
ReplyDeleteTim, is there anyway that you can provide a website link or few to help substantiate that the Black Lace and/or Black Beauty Elderberrys have the same medicinal qualities as the Sambucus Nigra and Sambucus Canadensis (the Americanized version of the Nigra)? I stumbled across this site trying to find that out for sure......am a long-time herbalist so a little bit of a "purist" for knowing about qualities (especially since they're known to be SO effective against all kinds of flu's). Have already researched so know that the original European Nigra *does* have bit stronger medicinal qualities with the American Canadensis version being slightly lesser but still effective nonetheless. But I love the black leaves look of the Lace & Beauty varities so really really really want to check more into those as well.
ReplyDeleteThanks tons!!!!!
Kate in WI :-)