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Pruning Sambuca to Tree Form

Carole Westgaard

19 years ago

Has anyone some experience with pruning elderberry (Sambuca) into a 'japanese maple' type form? This year my Sutherland gold is over six feet (and this is the 3rd year!) but it's branching from the bottom up, of course. There are two main 'trunks' and I wish there were only one, but hate to cut one off. All I want to do is trim all branches off to an 'umbrella' habit. Also have 'Black Lace' which is now three feet tall in its second year and hope to avoid the shrub look by pruning NOW, but not sure how. If anyone has experience with this, please share?

Westy in No. Illinois

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Comment (1)

Embothrium
19 years ago
It's Sambucus, actually. Cane-growers like elderberries may not produce long-lived individual trunks, so it may not work to attempt to produce a single-stem tree-like shape in many instances. Probably better just to snip off a few small lower side-branches, if you like, but not cut out main stems (trunks) trying to get everything coming off of a single main trunk that may not be up to the job.
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