Plants of South Eastern New South Wales

Sambucus gaudichaudiana

Fruit and leaves. Photographer Chris Clarke, Wilsons Promontary, Vic.

Fruiting stem. Photographer Richard Hartland, Mt Macedon, Vic

Shrub. Photographer James Booth, west of Kinglake, Vic

Common name

White elderberry

Family

Adoxaceae

Where found

Forest, rocky areas, along streams, and gullies. Widespread. Rarely coastal.

Notes

Shrub to about 2 m tall. Fruit fleshy. Stems grooved, more or less sparsely bristly, arising annually from a perennial rootstock. Leaves opposite each other, 10–35 cm long, compound, with 3-13 leaflets each mostly 3–15 cm long, 10–60 mm wide, the lowest pair small, stipule-like, and close to the stem. Larger leaflets often further divided. Leaflet tips pointed, margins toothed to more or less lobed, surfaces sparsely bristly. Flowers about 5 mm long, white, with a short tube, with 4 petals, sometimes 3, each 2-5 mm long. Flowers in loose clusters 8–20 cm diameter. Flowers spring-summer. Ripe fruit white or translucent, sometimes yellow or orange, oval, about 5 mm long.

Family was Sambucaceae. Family Caprifoliaceae in Vic.

All native plants on unleased land in the ACT are protected.

PlantNET description:  http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Sambucus~gaudichaudiana  (accessed 5 February, 2021)