Lemony Lace Elderberry Planted - November 2022

And the time has come...for the post about the very last shrub of the year.  The year of shrubs.  That the 2022 yard and garden headline:  The Year of Shrubs.  My number one priority item on my to-do list was to 'focus on shrubs' by adding a variety of mid-sized shrubs to the backyard.  I started the [garden diary] season with shrubs and the very last planting of the year is going to be about a shrub.  This one is a new (to me) deciduous shrub called Lemony Lace Elderberry. Sambucus racemosa. This one is from Proven Winners.

Ever wish our popular Black Lace elderberry came in a sunny bright yellow? We are happy to oblige: Lemony Lace offers finely dissected foliage but in a cheery gold color to really light up your landscape. This North American native produces big clusters of white flowers in early spring before the foliage emerges, then bright yellow leaves take over, edged in red. As the foliage ages, it turns an attractive chartreuse.

(Emphasis, mine)

This is my first Elderberry, but they have been something that I've looked at over the years as their light, feather-like foliage reminds me of Japanese Maples.  This one - being bright green AND ON AN END-OF-SEASON SALE - got my attention.  And the Bird's, too.  I brought it home from The Growing Place and knew it would work well in 'her garden' (which is really a slice of the backyard understory garden bed).  

See below for the Elderberry shrub as it stood in the nursery container.  It is multi-stemmed (3 stems) and about three feet tall:

I dug it into the north side understory bed - in between one of the Arrowwood Chicago Lustre Viburnums and the Doublefile Treeform Viburnum.  In the photo below, you can see the Arrowwood in the chicken wire on the right and (if you squint) the trunk of the Doublefile on the left.  And a couple of recently-transplanted hostas in front of it.  My thought is that this will grow to fill in the 'gap' between the two and kind of live 'under' the treeform Viburnum.

Here, below, are the tags from Proven Winners for the Lemony Lace Elderberry:

For a full accounting of the 2022 shrub planting (#1 on the list), I come up with this running total:

• 6 Green Giant Thujas. (Are these shrubs?  I've counted them in the 'tree' total, but I'm going to double-count these. 
• 4 Doublfile treeform Viburnum.  Two on north side, one in far back, one in front yard. 
• 3 Little Honey Oakleaf Hydrangeas.  By mounted hose in back.
• 2 Ruby Slippers Oakleaf Hydrangeas.  On the northside behind the weeping evergreen.
• 3 Green Velvet Boxwoods.  IB2DWs.  
• 3 Little Lime Hydrangeas.  Fronting the Belgian Fence.
• 2 1# Hicks Upright Yews.  By the steps to enter the firepit. 
• 1 Browns Yew.  Filling space by Firepit border. 
• 1 Lemon Thread False Cypress.  Under Hornbeams. 
• 1 Lemony Lace Elderberry.  By Viburnums in Understory garden. 

That's 26 shrubs.  Or...20 if we're calling the Thujas trees.  Either way, pretty good output against my #1 priority on the list.