Native blue elderberry shrub confirmed growing in Oregon roadside habitat
iNaturalist: bookishheather
Native Plants
If you're planting a native hedgerow or foraging patch in the Pacific Northwest, this sighting confirms blue elder is thriving right in suburban Happy Valley, not just deep forest.
Someone out walking near Happy Valley, Oregon spotted a blue elder shrub and logged it on iNaturalist, where other experts verified the identification. Blue elder is a native tree covered in clusters of powdery blue-purple berries that people have long used for jam, wine, and syrup, and birds love them too.
Key Findings
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Observation verified as 'research-grade' on iNaturalist, meaning the community confirmed the species ID
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Location: SE Boy Scout Lodge Rd, Happy Valley, Oregon, a suburban/edge habitat rather than deep wilderness
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Species: Sambucus cerulea (blue elder), a native Pacific Northwest shrub known for edible berries
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Technical Summary
A naturalist logged a confirmed sighting of blue elder, a native Pacific Northwest shrub prized for its berries, growing along a roadside in Happy Valley, Oregon.
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Original paper
blue elder (Sambucus cerulea) observed in SE Boy Scout Lodge Rd, Happy Valley, OR, US
Research-grade observation of blue elder in SE Boy Scout Lodge Rd, Happy Valley, OR, US.
Sambucus cerulea or Sambucus nigra subsp. cerulea, with the common names blue elderberry and blue elder, is a coarse textured shrub species of elder in the family Viburnaceae.
