Why I Oughta...

One of the more interesting early Spring shrubs in our garden is this Lemony Lace Elderberry.  Planted in the Fall of 2022 , it turns out this maroon-and-green lace-like foliage that look like little firework explosions on the limbs.  See below for a few photos of the almost Japanese-Maple-like leaves that sort-of unfurl from center clusters.   Spring bud burst is always a fun time, but right now, this Lemony Lace Elderberry might be the star of the entire show.  

I planted a lone Lemony Lace Elderberry (from Proven Winners) late in the season of Fall 2022.  It was bought at the end-of-season sale at the Growing Place and came back for the first time last Spring.  Here's a post showing the purple buds on the shrub in April 2023 .    Last year, I planted another pair of elderberry shrubs - this time they were dark-foliage Eiffel Tower varieties .   The Lemony Lace Elderberry has BRIGHT green foliage that resembles a finely dissected Japanese Maple.  It is also supposed to flower.  This one with big, white blooms that arrive before the foliage.  But, I didn't seen any blooms in the first growing season.  Maybe we will this year?   That's what happened with the treeform Doublefile Viburnum shrubs.  Planted in Spring of 222 and didn't flower that first year.  But, when they came back for their second growing season (2023), they put out a lovely set of large, white blooms . ...