Stats

Lifespan: Perennial
Size: Medium
Diet: Photosynthetic
Biome: Temperate forest
Range: Northern Hemisphere
Movement: Sessile
Breeding: Seeds
Defense: Toxins
Status: Common

About

A fast-growing shrub native to North America and Eurasia, bearing domed clusters of creamy-white flowers that ripen into vivid scarlet berry bunches by midsummer. Its berries are toxic to humans when raw but a vital food source for dozens of bird species.

Life cycle

1.
seed
A dormant seed waits for water and warmth before germinating.
2.
sprout
A first shoot emerges with cotyledon leaves and a tap root reaching down.
3.
sapling
A young plant grows true leaves and a stem or trunk, putting on height each season.
4.
mature
Fully grown, flowering or fruiting at adult size.

Learn more

Taxonomy

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Dipsacales
Family: Viburnaceae
Genus: Sambucus
Species: Sambucus racemosa