Elderberry 'Black Lace'
Sambucus nigra 'Black Lace' · Viburnaceae Popular
Finely cut, purple-black leaves, like a Japanese maple, with flat heads of pink, lemon-scented flowers in early summer.
- Size
- 6½ ft tall, 6½ ft wide
- Zones
- 5 to 7
- Light
- Full sun to part sun
- Flowers
- Early June to late June
- Pets
- Toxic (moderate)
- Job in a bed
- Specimen
A bed built around elderberry 'Black Lace'
The planner designed this bed around elderberry 'Black Lace' when this page was made: a 22 × 10 ft (6.7 × 3.0 m) English border in zone 6, full sun. It chose the other plants from the 966 that suit those conditions, and says below why elderberry 'Black Lace' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Elderberry 'Black Lace' × 1, pink
- 2 Winter heath × 16, white
- 3 Carpathian bellflower 'Blue Clips' × 21, blue
- 4 Sneezeweed × 3, yellow
- 5 Tatarian aster 'Jindai' × 3, purple
- 6 White mugwort × 4, cream
- 7 Lowbush blueberry × 13, white
- 8 Scarlet coral bells × 8, red
- 9 Coneflower 'Green Jewel' × 3, green
- 10 Grape hyacinth × 12, blue
- 11 Daffodil × 12, orange
- 12 Spring starflower × 12, blue
Why this plant
- The only flat plates. The others are bells, open bowls, daisies and others. Shape reads at a distance, where colours blur.
- The only pink.
- Part of the bed's structure. Shrubs and grasses keep their shape when the perennials die down. So do winter heath and lowbush blueberry.
Why here
- Anchors a back corner. At 6½ ft it is the tallest plant here, and the tallest close the ends of the bed, where they stand in front of nothing.
- A step in the back row. Next to sneezeweed (4 ft): no two neighbours there are the same height, so the back steps up and down like a skyline.
- One plant, alone. A shrub is seen as an object, and needs clear ground around it.
Why now
- In flower for four weeks. From early June to late June.
- In company. With Carpathian bellflower 'Blue Clips' and scarlet coral bells in late June: 3 kinds at once.
Planned as an English border: 14 of the 16 groups (88%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. Low plants run along 98% of the front edge: winter heath and Carpathian bellflower 'Blue Clips'. In winter there is still winter heath to look at.
The planner's own design check: 11 Excellent, 6 Good. It flags one thing to watch: Nothing on this plan is highly poisonous or an aggressive spreader.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where elderberry 'Black Lace' goes in a border
At 6½ ft it belongs at the back of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is very tall (5 to 6½ ft).
Its job: specimen. A feature plant with a shape of its own. It stands alone with room around it, and repeats only at a distance.
The darkest lacy foliage available for a cold garden. Pink, lime-green and silver plants glow against it. Cut it back hard in spring for larger leaves.
- Dark, lacy foliage
- A hardy stand-in for a Japanese maple
- Contrast with gold and silver
What to plant with elderberry 'Black Lace'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Lady's mantle: in flower together for four weeks, from early June; low enough (18 in) to stand in front of it; happy in the same moist soil.
- Panicle hydrangea 'Little Lime': takes over when it finishes, flowering from mid July; low enough (4 ft) to stand in front of it; happy in the same moist soil.
- Japanese forest grass 'Aureola': its chartreuse leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; low enough (16 in) to stand in front of it; happy in the same moist soil.
Questions about elderberry 'Black Lace'
Does elderberry 'Black Lace' need sun or shade?
Elderberry 'Black Lace' grows in full sun (6 or more hours of direct sun a day) and part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun).
It wants soil that stays evenly moist, of average fertility, and a good soak in dry spells.
What zones does elderberry 'Black Lace' grow in?
USDA zones 5 to 7. It is hardy to zone 5, which means it survives winter nights down to about −10 °F (−23 °C).
Above zone 7 it struggles: the zones measure winter cold, but a plant's top zone usually means the summers are too hot or the winters too mild for it to rest.
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does elderberry 'Black Lace' flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers early June to late June. As a summer flower it moves about half a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer.
| Zone 5 | Early June to late June |
|---|---|
| Zone 6 | Early June to late June |
| Zone 7 | Late May to late June |
Worked out from Hopkins' bioclimatic law: spring arrives about four days later for each degree of latitude north, and one zone is roughly two degrees. A warm spring or a cold one moves any garden two weeks either way.
How far apart should elderberry 'Black Lace' be planted?
6 ft (180 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 6½ ft (200 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 6½ ft (200 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many elderberry 'Black Lace' plants do I need?
Usually one. At 6 ft (180 cm) across, it is a plant you place, not one you mass. For a hedge or screen, set them 6 ft apart: two plants for a 10 ft run.
In the bed above, the planner used one in one group.
Is elderberry 'Black Lace' poisonous to dogs and cats?
Yes: moderate toxicity to people, dogs, cats and horses. The leaves, stems, roots and unripe berries are poisonous if eaten. The ripe berries are safe once cooked.
Rated from NC State Extension. Where references disagree, the more cautious rating is used.
Is there a pet-safe plant like elderberry 'Black Lace'?
These come closest to doing what elderberry 'Black Lace' does, and no toxicity is recorded for them:
- Dappled willow: the same job in a bed; 12 in narrower, grown for its leaves, not its flowers.
- Redleaf rose: the same flowering time and the same colour; an anchor, not a specimen, 24 in narrower.
- Staghorn sumac 'Tiger Eyes': the same job in a bed and the same flowering time; 12 in narrower, green, not pink.
Matched the way the planner's Swap button matches plants: the same job in a bed, then size, then flowering time.
Do deer eat elderberry 'Black Lace'?
They may. NC State does not list it as resistant to deer or rabbits. Where they visit, protect it, or plant it among ones they avoid.
What flowers after elderberry 'Black Lace'?
Elderberry 'Black Lace' is over by late June. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Panicle hydrangea 'Little Lime': from mid July to early October, 4 ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems (a recorded partner).
- Delphinium: from late June to mid July, 5 ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- Hardy hibiscus: from late July to mid September, 5 ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
What does elderberry 'Black Lace' look like in winter?
Elderberry 'Black Lace' drops its leaves and stands as bare branches. That is when to see its shape, and to prune it if it needs pruning.
Is elderberry 'Black Lace' good for bees and butterflies?
Elderberry 'Black Lace' is visited by butterflies and songbirds.
More Sambucus
- American elderberry Sambucus canadensis
- Elderberry 'Black Beauty' Sambucus nigra 'Gerda' (Black Beauty)
- Elderberry 'Lemony Lace' Sambucus racemosa 'Lemony Lace'
In these guides
- Garden plants toxic to cats
- Garden plants toxic to dogs
- Plants for butterflies
- Plants that feed garden birds
- Plants with purple and burgundy leaves
Zone guides: Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7
In flower in: June
Every fact on record
- Type
- Shrub
- Size
- 6½ ft (200 cm) tall, 6½ ft (200 cm) wide
- Plant
- 6 ft (180 cm) apart
- Height class
- Very tall (5 to 6½ ft)
- Place in the bed
- Back
- Flowers
- Early June to late June; flat plates; pink
- Leaves
- Fine texture, deciduous; black
- Shape
- Upright, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 5 to 7
- Light
- Full sun, part sun
- Soil
- Average, evenly moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- Light, in spring
- Family
- Viburnaceae
- Comes from
- Europe
- Attracts
- Butterflies, songbirds
Checked against NC State Extension. Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.