Help! Growing elderflowers.

[GardenNovice]

I absolutely love elderberry juice and am keen to grow my own, but I can't seem to find seeds or plants to buy anywhere. Does anyone know where I can find some? I know they grow wild, but as I've never seen one, I have no idea what they look like!

[SimonCole]

Where do you live GardenNovice? They are extremely common in the UK and I would say that it is hardly worth planting one because of the sheer quantities available in the hedgerows. They are about 1 in every 4 bushes in Buckinghamshire. The benefit of wild ones is that you get a greater choice of fruits from different strains. The Latin name is sambucus nigra, the black elder if you want the UK one. A google search will give you lots of info.

You can plant a bush, but they take up a fair amount of room. There are definitely developed varieties that you could check out, but a cutting from a local bush would suit better your local conditions... just choose the tastiest.

[Maf]

As Simon says you need to select a good strain as they are so variable.

In good strains the flowers smell like Meadowsweet, bad one smell like cat wee

You can root cuttings but beware of Hyldemor, the Elder-mother (and other numerous Elder beasties ) Some advocate offering a glass of the previous years harvest as appeasement, but I never figured out what to leave on the first harvest

Best find some favourite trees (away from roadsides) and visit them each year.

[Flummery]

Try google images for elderflower and elderberry - that should alow you to recognise them in the hedgerows. As Simon said, they are so common it shouldn't be necessary to use your own growing space.

[Snadger]

I've been trying to kill one off for years!