[9] The leaves are opposite, elliptic in shape, 6–10 centimetres (2+1⁄4–4 in) long, unlobed or shallowly 3-lobed, jaggedly serrated, and turning red in autumn; their underside glabrous, especially along the veins.

[10] The flowers are synoecious and fertile, the petals white and fused at the base forming a tube that flares into 5 lobes at the top; the stamens short (≤ 1mm)[10][11] and hidden within the corolla.

French botanist André Michaux is the first recorded authority to provide a scientific name for the plant, calling it Viburnum opulus var.

[7] French naturalist Constantine Samuel Rafinesque observed the plant later in 1808, calling it Viburnum edule, V. opulus var.

[20] It is also found growing in dense areas of trees and shrubs, alongside wetlands and bodies of water, and at higher elevations on gravel banks.

[6] This plant is dispersed through animals, such as birds and mammals, that carry, eat, digest, and excrete the seeds in different areas.

The berries can be used to prepare herbal cough medicines, while the roots have been used to make tea for relief of tooth pain or a sore throat.

[28][29] Consumption of the berries was mentioned in multiple origin myths of the Haida people,[30] often depicted as the food eaten at feasts or consumed by supernatural beings.