Sambucus nigra Golden Spark

The Sambucus nigra 'Golden Spark' is a very decorative variety of black elderberry with its two-tone leaves. This beautiful deciduous bush is adorned with compound foliage with toothed leaflets, a beautiful bright green with a yellow margin on the leaf edge. It produces beautiful creamy-white flowering in May-June, in the form of large corymbs composed of tiny nectar-rich flowers. These then develop into both decorative and edible black fruits, which can be used for making jam... or be enjoyed by birds. This elegant elderberry accepts most soils, as long as they are fertile and moist, and will form a medium-sized bush.

The Sambucus nigra 'Golden Spark' is a plant that was classified in the Caprifoliaceae family (just like honeysuckles), but is now classified in the Adoxaceae, a rather obscure botanical family, whose main other known genus is Viburnum (the Snowballs). It is a variety derived from the Sambucus nigra, a wild species found in Europe, North Africa and as far as Asia Minor. In nature, it is a graceful, spreading and rounded bush, supported by arched branches, and can reach several meters in height and width. Its growth is rapid, especially in fertile and moist soils that it prefers, and its exuberant habit makes it too bulky for many gardens.

Fortunately, many cultivars (horticultural varieties) that are more compact allow us to enjoy this interesting bush, especially for its nectar-rich flowering, which is beneficial to bees. 'Golden Spark' is thus a medium-sized variety appreciated for its beautiful two-tone foliage. Consisting of odd-pinnate leaves (an odd number of leaflets, usually 5), this slightly toothed foliage has a beautiful bright green colour, enhanced by a yellow to white-yellow peripheral margin. With its delicate appearance, this beautiful foliage is reminiscent of that of the Variegated Ground Elder (Aegopodium podograria 'Variegata') - but in an XXL version, of course, because this elderberry will reach a height of about 3m (10ft) and a width of 2m (7ft), forming a large bushy clump. In May-June, it produces a myriad of tiny white flowers, with 5 petals forming small stars, gathered in large flat corymbs, fragrant and somewhat ethereal. Very nectar-rich, these flowers are therefore very useful to pollinating insects, and can also be used for making infusions. They then develop into decorative black fruits in the following months, which will delight birds, unless you decide to harvest them to make jams or jellies, as they are edible.

Easy to grow, this bush thrives in both full sun and partial shade. It is not demanding in terms of soil composition, but it does appreciate fertile and moist soil. Under these conditions, it requires very little maintenance, except for occasional pruning to correct its habit or limit its height. Very hardy, down to -30°C (-22°F), it can grow anywhere in France, being more sensitive to extreme heat than to cold.

The Golden Spark elderberry is an interesting variety for the garden that deserves a place in a flowerbed or hedge. Its natural-looking habit is easy to combine with other plants with a wild appearance, even if its variegation betrays its horticultural origin. In a vibrant hedge, it will go well with our native European Spindle Tree (Euonymus europaeus) with its delicate habit, and whose foliage takes on superb autumn colours, while the pink and orange fruits are extremely decorative (but toxic, be careful!). Rosa glauca, a botanical rose with beautiful bluish foliage and nectar-rich bright pink flowers, produces decorative red fruits at the end of the season that will feed birds in winter, in addition to those of the elderberry. And remaining in the decorative flowering and edible fruit category, your hedge will be enriched with 'Smoky' Amelanchier, with its white spring flowers that produce appetising black berries in June-July...

Good to know: elderberry leaves are known to accelerate compost decomposition. The liquid fertiliser made from black elderberry leaves is useful in organic gardening to fight against mildew and attacks from aphids, or to deter rodents. Soak 1 kg of leaves in 10L of water for a few days, then spray as needed. It can also be planted in an orchard, where it attracts birds that prey on insects.