Sambucus velutina
Encyclopedia
Sambucus velutina, more commonly known as the Velvet Elder, is a relatively large, deciduous
Deciduous
Deciduous means "falling off at maturity" or "tending to fall off", and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally, and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe...

 shrub that is endemic to the Southwestern region of the United States. This particular species is characteristic of Central California and Western Nevada.

Morphological characteristics

The Velvet Elder has medium-hued, green, pinnate
Pinnate
Pinnate is a term used to describe feather-like or multi-divided features arising from both sides of a common axis in plant or animal structures, and comes from the Latin word pinna meaning "feather", "wing", or "fin". A similar term is pectinate, which refers to a comb-like arrangement of parts...

 leaves, that are notably hairy to the touch. Generally, there are about 5-9 individual leaflets present, each measuring anywhere from 5-30 centimeters (cm) in length. The plants are capable of growing up to anywhere from 3-8 meters (m) in height, with a typical, relatively thick, stem diameter of approximately 30-60 centimeter (cm). These plants have berries that are black and deep blue in color. These characteristics can be observed amongst many of the similar species that will be briefly discussed below.

Similar species

There are numerous, closely related species that are typically found throughout many regions of North America. Sambucus velutina is exclusively found in the Southwestern portion of the United States, yet multiple other genetically similar species can also be found living in other areas of the country. A few examples of such species include Sambucus canadensis
Sambucus canadensis
Sambucus canadensis is a species of elderberry native to a large area of North America east of the Rocky Mountains, and south through eastern Mexico and Central America to Panama. It grows in a variety of conditions including both wet and dry soils, primarily in sunny locations.-Growth:It is a...

(American Elder), Sambucus cerulea
Sambucus cerulea
Sambucus cerulea, common name Blue Elderberry and Blue Elder, is a coarse shrub species of elder in the family Adoxaceae.The taxonomy of this species is in dispute, and it can be referred to by several different names. The USDA lists it as Sambucus nigra ssp...

(Blue Elderberry), and Sambucus simpsonii (Florida Elder).
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