Viburnum

Viburnums are an attractive, year-round addition to any landscape.  Over 120 species and named cultivars exist.  This large selection includes both deciduous and evergreen viburnums, which are not only different in growth habits, flowers, fruit and foliage, but also different in tolerance to many growing conditions.  Flowers are primarily creamy white but can vary from white to pink.  The individual florets grow on conspicuous, flat, rounded or pyramidal panicles or clusters usually found at the end of the branches.  Fruits are generally brightly colored either during ripening or at maturity.  They are very attractive to birds that love to eat them. Foliage also varies from a glossy green to dull, dark-green, velvet appearance, to foliage that is thick and leathery.  Fall color ranges from a glossy red to a fiery scarlet or purple.  Most viburnums are dense shrubs forming a mass of green foliage while others grow as loose, open shrubs.  Most viburnum varieties grow well when planted in a moist, deep, rich, loamy and slightly acidic soil (pH 5.5 to 6.5).  Some varieties will adapt to wet, acidic or alkaline soils as well as shaded and wooded areas.  Once established, viburnums require little attention.The height and spread of most viburnums can be regulated with selective pruning in the early spring.

 

Below are several popular varieties:

American Cranberry Bush - Viburnum tribolum
Produce rounded clusters of white flowers in late May.  Bright-red, edible fruit ripens in late summer, and their foliage turns an attractive red in fall.  Dense shrub reaches mature height of 12 feet. Prefers well drained soil and full sun.

Arrowood – Viburnum dentatum

Produce flat clusters of creamy-white flowers in early June.  Late summer blue fruit ripens and foliage turns flossy red in the fall.  Mature height is 15 feet.  Prefers well drained or moist soil with full or partial shade.

Doublefile – Viburnum plicatum 'Tomentosum'
May bear two rows of creamy-white, flat clusters of flowers on each branch.  The bright-red fruit ripens in fall and is quickly eaten by birds.  Foliage turns a dull red in the fall.  The mature height is 9 feet. Prefers well drained soil and full sun.

European Cranberry Bush – Viburnum opulus
Similar to American cranberry bush except the fruit is not a palatable.  Dwarf forms 1-3 feet high; compact 5-6 feet high; yellow-fruited form 10-13 feet high.  Prefers well drained soil and full or partial shade.

Mapleleaf – Viburnum acerifolium
Open shrubs that produce small, flat clusters of yellowish-white to white flowers in early June.  Foliage turns a purplish-black in fall with black fruit ripening at the same time.  Height at maturity 6 feet.  Prefers acidic soil and dense shade.

Siebold – Viburnum sieboldi
Slightly rounded clusters of creamy-white flowers in late May.  Bright red to black fruit ripen on bright-red stalks in early summer.  The dense, dark-green, wrinkled leaves turn red in fall.  Tree-like habit of growth and can reach 30 feet in height.  Prefers well drained soil with full or partial shade.

Snowball – Viburnum Opulus ‘Roseum’
Rounded cluster of creamy-white, sterile flowers that resemble snowballs.  Does not produce fruit but fall color is an attractive red.  Dense shrub reaching 8 feet at maturity.  Prefers well drained soil and full or partial shade.

Tea – Viburnum setigerum
Produce inconspicuous white flowers in May.  Oval fruit ripens orange to bright red on reddish red stalks in October.  Open leggy to a height of 12 feet.  Narrow leaves turn bronze. Prefers well-drained and alkaline soil and full sun.

Willowood – Viburnum x rhytidophylloides
Small, flat clusters of creamy-white flowers bloom in late May.  Red to black fruit ripens in fall.  Deeply veined leaves are 4-7 inches long and persist well into winter.  Height to 18 feet.  Prefers well-drained soil and full sun.

Insect and Diseases
European Cranberry Bush and Snowball Viburnums are most susceptible to aphids.  Many Viburnums are susceptible to leaf spot, which appears as gray-green, spongy, water-soaked spots on the leaves and young stems, enlarging into irregular, brown, sunken areas.  Viburnums that are grown in shaded areas are often attacked by powdery mildew, which appears as a white mealy material covering the leaves.