Elderberry, 'Bob Gordon' (Sambucus canadensis)

This cultivar was selected from the wild by Bob Gordon near Osceola, Missouri, in 1999. It was introduced by the University of Missouri in 2011. It is very winter-hardy. Good for hardiness zones 3 to 9. It is a determinate cultivar that flowers from the late May through mid-June. It has large flower clusters with white flowers. This cultivar produces vigorous open to upright shrubs that can reach 6 to 8 feet in height and 6 to 8 feet in width. It ripens at the end of July through the first part of August. It produces small to medium fruits that are purple and sweet. Once dormant in fall, plants could be cut down to the ground. They will produce fruit on primocanes, which are the current season’s growth.