Black Beauty Elderberry

This has been a real trip you guys, going through the plant files looking for all of these plants. The Sweetspire was not in there at all, the Sutherland Gold looks a lot like my Kerria that was not the variagated. PrairieGirlZ5 does that Sutherland Gold have a double flower like the Corriopsis that looks like a yellow ball the size of a ping pong ball? And the chocolate eupatorium is beautiful.

Gee Soferdig, just look at all the new plants you can get to go with your BB!! I would love to see the Sweetspire. One of you, or all of you, will have to post it in the plantfiles.

Jeanette

Jeanette, check this link for Sweetspire http://davesgarden.com/pf/adv_search.php?searcher%5Bcommon%5D=sweetspire&searcher%5Bfamily%5D=&searcher%5Bgenus%5D=&searcher%5Bspecies%5D=&searcher%5Bcultivar%5D=&searcher%5Bhybridizer%5D=&search_prefs%5Bsort_by%5D=rating&images_prefs=both&Search=Search. And pic of flowers on Sutherland Gold http://gardenbreizh.org/photos/Oli/photo-7682.html

I don't know if I can dig up a picture somewhere, but I had a great Sutherland Gold in my old garden. I coppiced it most years (cut it back to about 1-3'), and it grew into a small tree every year, maybe 10-12' tall. Because of the coppicing, mine never flowered, though I have grown other S. nigra cultivars (the old 'Guincho Purple', inferior to the newer "black" cultivars, but it did flower well) that flower just fine without coppicing. Sutherland Gold has really beautiful cut-leaf gold-chartreuse foliage that can be grown in full sun without scorching. Though not generally advertised, one of the most beautiful things about this shrub is the large burgundy "splash" at the center of each compound leaf, that gives it a wonderful 2-tone effect for a few weeks in the spring. Underplant with burgundy and yellow tulips for a real color echo show!

One of the main reasons to grow these plants for me is that they are perfect scaffolding for clematis. They look wonderful with all kinds of clematis scrambling through their branches. The purple/blue clems look great on S.G., and the pinks and reds on the 'black' varieities. Coppicing helps the clematis climb up far enough with light early in the season so that the elderberry and the clematis can grow together. You can plant a young elder and young clematis together early on (both about 1-2 gallon size), and neither will overtake the other while they are getting established. Group 3 (hard prune) clems work best. Abundant watering the first 2 seasons is also they key to getting both plants established well.

RCN, Those are reall good pictures. I do like the Sweetspire. The pictures were outstanding. And the Sutherland's Gold is not what I expected at all. Very nice tho.


David!! What a wonderful suggestion. And a perfect time to look for a clematis. I wonder if the variagated Kerria would work the same way? Are the Kerria strong enough to hold the clematis up?

Do you think the reason yours never flowered is because you cut it back? I don't understand the "large burgandy splash at the center of each leaf"? What family are they?

Jnette - 'Sutherland Gold' is in DG's plant files, under Sambucus racemosa. It's in the Caprifoliaceae family. I got there by selecting Plant Files and then clicking on "Click here to search for plants" and typing in what I knew: genus (sambucus) and cultivar (Sutherland Gold), click on "Search", the "hits" come up under that, you have to page down and select the entry you want. Same thing for "sweetspire" , enter that in common name and you get 9 hits. Hope this helps!

http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/76829/index.html

Here's a snap of my itea's, or sweetspire's, fall color.

I think most of the ornamental elderberries planted in gardens are selections of the european elder, S. nigra, not S. canadensis or S. racemosa which are N American species. Not that it matters much (or at all...).

A "burgundy splash in the center of each compund leaf" is just that. Elderberries have compound leaves, just like ashes, hickories, and lots of other trees and shrubs. The unusual thing about Sutherland Gold in spring is that the leaves overall are two-toned. Each leaflet has a large burgundy spot near the attachment to the leaf petiole, so the leaf looks two-toned. It is really quite striking as the foliage emerges in the spring, and lasts for several weeks before the leaves turn a uniform chartreuse green. I have some pictures...... somewhere............ which I will look for.

Nearly any small to medium shrub, planted in the appropriate setting, can be a good associate for clematis. The best are those that grow and flower in full sun. Excellent candidates which have worked well for me are elderberries, mockoranges, some of the smaller lilacs, viburnums, etc. It is also important to choose a clematis that is appropriate in size and growth habit for the clematis. Most group 3 clematis listed as being 4-10' tall are good sizes. Sweet Autumn clematis, and others listed as being in the 15-30' range, are much too large and will swamp the average shrub, though they can be planted to climb smaller trees. One of the things that makes elderberries so suited is that they, like group 3 clematis, can be pruned hard and will grow well to make a display in a single season, once established. That seems to work well with group 3 clematis. I don't grow kerrias (never liked them....) but I suspect they would work just fine.

PrairieGirlZ5 the Sweetspire is very nice. I do like the ornamental grass you have planted with it. I don't think I was going down far enough on the page of the plantfiles to find them but I did using David's directions earlier.

David, I am going to have to find a listing of the group 3 clematis. Thanks.

Do you guys know if it is too late to prune Pyracantha? I am not sure when is the time of year to prune them since if you prune them in the spring you are cutting the berries off or the flowers which produce the berries later and if you prune in the fall you are cutting the berries off.

I went to prune in the spring, prior to blooming, and had just started when I uncovered a robin sitting on a nest I didn't know was there. And, of course she had 2 or 3 batches of younguns, so I am at a loss.

Steve, this is the thread I d-mailed you about. Jeanette