Black elderberry is a low-maintenance and easy-to-grow plant. It's worth having such a shrub in your garden because its fruits are a "vitamin bomb".
Black elderberry is also known as the medicinal elderberry, and it is a tall shrub or small tree, growing up to several meters in height with curved, arching branches. It is a species that adapts very easily to different conditions.

Black elderberry is a very decorative shrub during the flowering period, when large, umbelliform creamy-white flowers appear. The fruits are also very decorative, they are black, shiny, and most importantly, very healthy.

The plant should be planted in a sunny, warm place, but it also does well in partial shade. It tolerates various soil types, including dry, infertile, or periodically waterlogged soils. However, it is best to grow it on well-drained, humus-rich, moderately moist soils that are rich in nitrogen and calcium compounds, with a pH of 5.5-6.5. Elderberry is a shrub resistant to pests and diseases.

Black elderberry shrubs should be planted in a permanent location in the fall or spring. It is a frost-resistant species that does not require covering before winter. In the early stages of cultivation, it is recommended to water the plant. Before and after flowering, it is worth fertilizing the shrubs with a multi-component fertilizer. Black elderberry responds well to organic fertilization. Pruning of the basic species is not required, but this procedure can increase yield and improve the shape of the shrub. Every few years, it is worth removing some of the oldest shoots and shortening younger ones. Large-fruited varieties of black elderberry should be pruned every year.

If you want to collect flowers and fruits, it should be done away from roads. The collection is done on a sunny day, preferably after rain. Black elderberry flowers are collected when the umbels are about 80 percent developed. They are dried in the shade, with an optimal drying temperature of 30–35°C. Black elderberry fruits should be collected when fully ripe. Only ripe fruits should be collected, as unripe ones contain prussic acid! Initially, the fruits are dried at 30°C, and then at 60°C. The pedicels are removed only after drying.

Black elderberry flowers contain flavonoids, organic acids, and mineral salts. The fruits are rich in sugars, anthocyanins, pectins, vitamins, mineral salts, and organic acids. The entire plant contains toxic compounds: sambunigrin and sambucine, which decompose at high temperatures. Black elderberry flowers and fruits have antipyretic, diaphoretic, and diuretic properties. They are more effective than linden flowers. Infusions of black elderberry are recommended for improper metabolism, colds, flu, depression, and circulatory system disorders.