Deciduous Flowering Shrubs - Part 7 - Viburnum

Top 2. Apr 19, 2002 11:55 PM

» Marge_Talt - Re: care of recently planted viburnums

In response to message posted by dickrey:

Hi dickrey, Welcome to Gardening in Shade!

Actually, I have never fertilized any of my Viburnums at all. When I planted them, I amended the soil in the area with assorted organic material. I mulch them after planting and renew the mulch until some groundcover plant has covered ground under them or they have gotten so large they shade it completely, when I sort of leave most of the leaves that accumulate under the plants as a self-replenishing mulch.

I'm not an advocate of fertilizing unless a plant shows a definate lack of something, especially woody plants. Over fertilization can cause sappy growth that isn't thrifty.

I don't know where you're gardening, but the best thing you can do for a woody plant in its first season in the garden is make sure you water it consistantly if there is less than an inch of rain a week. More woody plants are lost because of lack of watering than any other cause.

Your plants will be spending a lot of energy this year growing roots - which is what they need to do for future well-being - so they need to find moist (not soggy) soil for the roots to grow into.

Keep them mulched - keeping mulch away from the main stem - at least a couple inches but not much more in depth.

Organic mulch of any kind decays and feeds the soil and the plant...that's all you really need to do unless you know your soil is greatly lacking in some nutrient.

If your soil is pure sand, then you may want to apply some dehydrated manure along with your mulch, since nutrients are washed through sandy soil quickly.

My experience with the Viburnums I grow is that they are naturally not fast growing plants, but will in a few years make large shrubs...dunno which ones you've got. Some also flower at very young ages. I have one, about 2.5 feet tall, that I grew from a cutting and planted out last year and I see it is going to flower for me - it's only about 3 or 4 years old, so I'm quite happy about it:-)

-- posted by Marge_Talt

Top 3. May 4, 2002 9:01 AM

» Karen625 - Viburnum-Shasta

A couple weeks ago I went to our local botanical garden & fell in love w/ V.Mariesii. I began my hunt for one. I purchased what was tagged as V. plicatum Mariesii. It has light green leaves and a lace cap flower. I have since returned to the gardens & found V. Mariesii was no longer blooming but the V. Shasta was & it had the lighter green leaves, like my plant. I purchased my viburnum for a shade area I'm working on, but would LOVE to have it in my yard. My yard is FULL sun. I am in zone 7. I see plenty of snowball bushes in my neighborhood in full sun. Can someone tell me if mine will take it.
Thanks in advance for your help.

-- posted by Karen625

Top 4. May 6, 2002 2:37 AM

» Marge_Talt - Re: Viburnum-Shasta

In response to message posted by Karen625:

Hi Karen, Welcome to Gardening in Shade!

Actually, while many Viburnum will tolerate and even bloom fairly well in quite a bit of shade, they really prefer some sun.

Now, not having full sun, I can't testify whether that would work, tho' I'm also gardening in z. 7. I should think it would, if the plant is kept watered when we have our dry, hot spells.

My V. plicaturm has open sky above it, although it is on the north side of some large trees, it gets direct sun in the middle of the day and on one side of it in the afternoon. It seems to do just fine and blooms away.

I'd say go for it; just make sure you water that shrub every week if it doesn't rain, especially for the first year it's it the ground.

My experience with this genus is that they are more dense and compact when they get direct sun and more open in shade.

-- posted by Marge_Talt

Top 5. Dec 4, 2002 8:10 PM

» 3DogMike - Leather Leaf Viburnum

Have some confusion with flowering habits. I have been told it flowers on second year wood and so pruned accordingly. There are buds on it just as winter has set in. (Central Ontario, Zone 4-5b.)I hope this information is correct.

Part of the problem with this shrub is that it is confined. It is very healthy but as it has matured it has had to be restricted to an area less than 6' square. So far have managed to prune to a shape that is pleasing but I am afraid that this heavy pruning has meant that flower buds are lopped off as a sacrifice.

This shrub does not tend to send up new shoots. If it did I might occasionally cut back to these younger shoots to help keep it small.

Any suggestions. I do not want to move it as it would cost me another shrub I value and I like the leaf texture and colour.

-- posted by 3DogMike

Top 6. Dec 5, 2002 2:19 PM

» Marge_Talt - Re: Leather Leaf Viburnum

In response to message posted by 3DogMike:

Hi Mike, Welcome to Gardening in Shade!

Yes, Viburnum rhytidophyllum forms flower buds from July through September - depending on where you are, I assume. This means on old wood. In other words, on wood that exists in the summer before the next spring flowering period....hope that makes sense:-)

If you are pruning in summer, fall, winter or early spring, you will be cutting off flower buds. If you want to prune annually, best do it immediately after flowers fade, before the new buds form. This might be the end of May, or possibly later for you as you are so far north.

These are really not shrubs designed to be sheared. They are usuallyl multi-stemmed, but it seems from your message that yours may have a single stem?

According to Dirr, you can prune this to the ground to rejuvinate it...drastic, but it can apparantly be done because he says that in its northern range, it is often winter-killed to the ground and generally resprouts.

Of course, if you do this, you will end up with a very small shrub for a few years until it regrows.

I have only had mine this one season and it is a tiny plant, so I have no experience with pruning it, but seems to me like you might be better off removing some of the larger branches back to the main stem than trying to head them back, considering that the flowers form on the tips of the branches. If you are removing all the tips, the plant has to work hard to put out new terminal buds and form flower buds..and it may not be having enough time between clippings to do this...tho' you say you have buds now...?

Now, you are also at the farthest northern limit for this plant, so I wonder if your flower buds might be getting frozen over winter, if you aren't getting any blooms at all? You must have it in a good micro-climate for it to remain evergreen for you....am assuming it is evergreen:-)

One of the features of leatherleaf viburnums is their terminal cluster of flower buds that are visible all winter...so it is a shame to lose them:-)

I don't know if I've answered your question or not...if not, try me again:-)

-- posted by Marge_Talt