Bodnant viburnum

Synonyms: Arrowwood, Viburnum bodnantens.

Bodnant viburnum (Viburnum ×bodnantense Aberc. ex Stearn) – a hybrid from the family Adoxaceae, genus Viburnum (Viburnum). Obtained by crossing two Asian parent species, Viburnum farreri Stearn (synonym: Viburnum fragrans Bunge, native to northern China) and Viburnum grandiflorum Wall. ex DC (from the Himalayan region). This hybrid was selected in 1933 at the Edinburgh Botanic Garden, but received its official name only two years later, in 1934–1935, at the Bodnant garden in Wales.

It is a low deciduous shrub 2.5–3.5 m in height and 2–3 m in width. In youth the branches grow upright; in maturity they picturequely arch and pendulum. Growth rate is moderate.

Leaves lanceolate or ovate, toothed, rugose, 5–10 cm long, green; in autumn they turn red to dark purple with a coppery tint.

The flowers are small, gathered in corymb-like inflorescences, white-pink in color, fragrant, and located at the tips of the shoots. Buds are pink. It flowers in March–April; sometimes after a warm autumn or winter it can bloom in November or February. Pollinated by insects.

Fruits – bright red or dark blue small drupes, 8–10 mm in diameter, ripen in October and may remain on the plant throughout the winter. Fruits infrequently.

Cultivars: Dawn, Charles Lamont, Deben.

Hardiness zone: 5–8

Site: prefers sunny positions but can also grow in partial shade. Moderately drought-tolerant. Tolerates any well-drained soils. Tolerant of urban conditions.

Pruning: tolerates pruning well.

Propagation: propagated by seed or by cuttings taken in autumn and treated with rooting hormone.

Pests: aphids, viburnum leaf beetle (bark beetle).

Diseases: powdery mildew

Uses: used as a specimen in borders, parks and courtyards. Combines well in groups with Daphne odora ‘Aureomarginata’, Elaeagnus pungens ‘Maculata’, Fatsia japonica, Sarcococca hookeriana var. Humilis, as well as with perennials – hellebores (Hellebores), pulmonarias (Pulmonaria ‘Benediction’ and longifolia ssp. Cevennensis).