usually.. with gold/yellow plants.. its the intensity of the color.. which varies with too much shade ...

e.g. in conifers.. the yellows tend to be more limey.. or greener.. in too much shade ...

now i had an elderberry at my old house.. i would say.. 15 feet wide.. by 10 high ... one of the plants i moved to get away from ...

take a peek at the link ... and think to yourself.. i live in suburbia.. where am i going to plant this monster??? .. dont be confused by those plants in small pots.. at point of sale ...

ken

https://www.google.com/search?q=sambucus&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjDhqKsktjNAhVo44MKHbpsAR4Q_AUICSgC&biw=940&bih=745&dpr=0.9#tbm=isch&q=golden+sambucus

i live in suburbia.. where am i going to plant this monster???

It is my understanding that there are some compact varieties eg "Golden Locks"

'Golden Locks' way smaller than most of the others, apparently. You can cut these things down to the ground every year if you want, as well. Or prune them up to make small, mutli-trunked trees.

you are experienced enough to know.. that any plant with a dwarf annual growth rate.. never really stops growing..

so as sara says.. you are signing yourself up for the rest of its life.. for pruning... rejuvenation style ... and one thing i learned about that.. the older i get.. the less it interests me ...

my old one.. also suckered .. if i recall ... so eventually.. even the trunks started spreading ... sorta like a lilac ... eventually the clump got huge ...

of course.. there is always shovel pruning.. to get rid of a garden mistake.. lol ...

my discussion is aimed more at newbs considering plants ... especially ones that come in cute little one gallon pots ... and then 5 years later.. the thing is trying to swallow the house .. lol ...

ken

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ea5jKFGgUw

any plant with a dwarf annual growth rate.. never really stops growing..

Given my age it can be considered a dwarf.

Also I do not rejuvenation prune these - I coppice them. That means cutting them off at ground level - as low as you possibly can (for me it is often a good task for a strong young man with a chainsaw). I rarely rejuvenation prune anytime as it is time-consuming and difficult. I save that for shrubs that really do look attractive when they are thinned out. Rejuvenation pruning is often necessary for flowering shrubs, such as lilacs, to encourage continued bloom, or those with attractive new stems, such as the colored-twig dogwoods.

While yes, you will have to maintain the shrub if either coppiced or pruned to a multi-trunked tree, both are relatively easy to maintain if you really like the look of the foliage.

The yellow kinds usually need some shade as otherwise they burn in hot sun.