Can You Trim Back an Elderberry Bush in the Spring if It Has Already Started to Grow?

Features

• Proper pruning enhances and increases elderberry flowers and fruit. American elderberry (Sambucus canadensis) grows 8- to 10-inch, edible white flower clusters. Its dark purple berries, high in vitamins and antioxidants, are those most often used in foods or wine-making. Red elderberry (Sambucus racemosa) -- strictly ornamental -- bears poisonous fruit that matures to bright red. Both species are hardy in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 3 through 8. European elderberries (Sambucus nigra), hardy in USDA zones 4 through 8, produce flowers and edible purple fruit. Often grown as ornamentals, some cultivars display variegated or deep purple foliage and pink flowers.

Growth Habit

• Early each year, elderberry bushes send up vigorous new shoots that reach full height in just one season. The following year, these young canes produce lateral branches that flower and fruit heavily that year and the next. Elderberry flowers and fruit grow on the tips of new growth, especially on the lateral branches. Two-year-old canes produce the greatest number of flowers and the berries that follow. Once elderberry branches exceed three years of age, fruit drops dramatically. These older branches detract from the shrub's beauty, and reduce flowering and fruit production overall. Pruning is unnecessary until your elderberry bush passes its third year.

Pruning

• The main goal of pruning elderberries should be removal of all dead, diseased and broken branches along with older, unproductive canes. This is most easily done in late winter before buds break, when the branches can be clearly seen. If you need to delay pruning, these old branches can still be removed at a later time. When you're done trimming, all canes older than three years should be gone in their entirety. Remaining canes will ideally be divided evenly between one-year, two-year and three-year-old canes. Leave new growth on these remaining canes untouched so flowers and fruit are not affected. Proper pruning also reduces the likelihood of insect borers than can plague older canes.

Culture

• Other than annual pruning, elderberries require minimal care. They have few pests or diseases. The shrubs thrive in full sun and slightly acidic, consistently moist soils high in organic matter. Avoid poorly drained, heavy soils. Shallow roots appreciate mulch to conserve moisture and reduce competition from weeds. When cultivating, stay close to the surface to avoid root damage. Planting a second elderberry variety as a pollinator will increase fruit. Unless you want to share berries with birds, use protective netting when the fruit begins to ripen in late summer. Though astringent when raw, edible elderberries take on sweetness when they're processed. Once they ripen, harvest the full cluster, and process the berries right away.