Sambucus nigra 'THUNDERCLOUD'

Aren’t the breeders krafty, I often say to myself. Take European elder, for instance. This omnipresent shrub grows anywhere, without any maintenance and the more you prune it the thicker it gets. Well, what a promising start for cultivation, someone said. And here we are! So forget about the common weed of our countryside and dive in the world of SAMBUCUS, the world of colours, shapes and sizes that, with 10 different varieties, could well do for one complete garden.

Thundercloud is another dark-leaved variety of European elder. It is a sport of Guincho Purple from 1997 producing attractive purple red, almost purple black, deciduous leaves, and numerous flowers on young plants. They are formed in flattened panicles, open from rich purple pink buds to soft cotton-candy pink, fragrant flowers from late May for 3-4 weeks. They are followed by edible berries in late summer.

Elder tolerates wide ranges of soil and will be happy of almost any location. Thundercloud is a vigorous grower forming an upright shrub almost 3m tall. Its size can easily be controlled by early spring pruning. You can cut back anything from 1/3 to 2/3 of previous year’s growth but after hard pruning it will flower less. Fully hardy to about -34°C (USDA zone 4).

Last update 11-02-2018