It occurs also in the interior wet belt of the Kootenays especially along the Columbia River. The North American range extends from Alaska to all along the U.S. coast. It also occurs in many parts of the Rockies and related forms range across the continent. Typical red elderberry occupies moist open settings such as the edges of swamps or along floodplains. You can also find it in moist forests from low to mid elevation.
Red elderberry makes a relatively easy garden plant.
Raise it from cleaned seed, sown in the fall, or from cuttings. It is well suited to the banks of ditches under power lines because of its relatively short stature. The late spring blooms provide an attractive show. The bright red fruit is not only showy but draws many an avian dinner guest such as the robin, towhee and western bluebird. This shrub suits the back edge of property particularly well and is likely useful in restoring most open to partly shady sites along the coast.