Elderberries are ripening right now — per University of New Hampshire Extension, American elderberry fruit turns dark purple-black between August and September, which is exactly where we are.
Bob Gordon is a named selection prized for berries that ripen uniformly across the cluster and resist shattering (dropping before you can harvest them) — a real improvement over wild-collected elderberry. Plant in full sun for the heaviest bloom and fruit set, in consistently moist soil.
One important note if you're growing for the fruit: raw elderberries and all other parts of the plant are mildly toxic. Berries need to be cooked before eating — that's standard for elderberry and part of why every recipe calls for cooking them into syrup, jelly, or jam rather than eating them fresh off the branch.
It blooms and fruits on the current season's new growth, so pruning in late winter or early spring won't cost you next year's harvest.
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Source: University of New Hampshire Extension — What Is the Best Way to Grow Elderberries?
