Viburnum questions

Hopefully VV will chime in.

First, I have several Viburnum dentatum (arrowwood viburnum) that I obtained from the state nursery March 07. They were very small when planted, but they did exceptionally well last year, and have flourished this year, as well. I have one group on the west side of my house, getting several hours of afternoon sun, and a group on the south side that get filtered sun all day. The ones on the west side of the house are growing dynamically, and are between 4 and 5 feet now. Those in the filtered sun are not growing as tall, but have very lush foliage. My question is, when can I expect them to bloom? Next spring, or is that too optimistic?

Second, I have a Viburnum juddi that I planted September 07. It was a large shrub, obtained from a well respected wholesale grower in Ohio (Brown and Sons). I bought several shrubs and trees at the same time, and everything is doing wonderfully, except the Judd. It bloomed this spring, but the foliage is thin and most of the leaves are malformed. Is it just taking some time to adapt, or is something wrong?

You rang?

With that kind of vigor, your Viburnum dentatum seedlings (assumption, since you said you got them from your state nursery) may very well bloom next year, as long as you don't prune them too much since they bloom on old wood. If they are rooted cuttings of named clones, they could have bloomed this year. Many cuttings I've rooted bloom the following season.

Spontaneous seedlings here are often in shady areas under trees where birds made the deposit, and don't usually bloom that quickly. 3-4 years is a good average.

As for your Viburnum x juddii: you say it was a large shrub. I'm going to assume it was a balled-and-burlapped (B&B) plant. If that is incorrect, let me know. A. Brown and Sons are indeed good growers, and I see that they only list this plant grown as B&B.

Moving larger B&B plants is certainly a way to get instant satisfaction in initial appearance, but it is also like choosing to raise a child. You have committed to an investment of time in order to establish and raise this unpredictable and sometimes incorrigible infant to the point that it can spread its wings (bracts?) and handle the big old world on its own.

Your Judd viburnum is going to need some time to re-establish roots. Most of the time, a transplanted field-grown plant leaves 80% or better of its roots in the nursery, and those are most of the ones doing the business of moisture/nutrient uptake out at the tips.

You might post some pictures of your ailing plant, because there surely could be some environmental pathogen contributing to its struggle. I'd bet that it is an opportunistic problem, though, due to your plant being under transplant stress.

Keep adequate moisture about it (especially the root ball, where all of its roots are/were when you planted it) and maybe give it some light feeding with a water-soluble fertilizer when there are moderate temperatures. I usually scatter a handful of 6 month slow release balanced fertilizer under new transplants, to give a very light boost to the plant.

If you can't post pics, give a complete rundown of what you bought. Shrub canopy dimensions, rootball dimensions, rootball containment materials, etc. all play a role in expectations of success. Also, compare soil type of nursery stock to soil in new planting site. This often is a condition of failure that goes completely unrecognized by many gardeners.

All right, that's probably enough time on the soapbox for the evening. I think there is a steak and Syrah singing their siren song...

Que syrah, syrah! Thank you so much VV. I will shoot some pictures in the morning.

The dentatum were indeed seedlings. One year old when planted. Nice to hear that they may bloom next year.

The Judd was indeed a B&B. I am guessing the rootball was about 3 foot diameter. I watered it weekly last fall when planted until it was completely dormant. It started raining in February and hasn't stopped since. According to the weatherman this evening, we have had a year's worth of rain already this year. Some of it has been in deluges, but for the most part it has just rained one heck of a lot. That has finally come to a gradual halt, and I am detecting some dryness in the soil, so I will resume watering all my Brown transplants, with particular attention to the Judd. I gave it a shot of fertilizer with a root zone feeder several weeks ago, shortly after the bloom period.

It's hard to compare the rich glacial deposits of western Ohio to the red clay and rock I try to grow in. I amended the planting area about a foot deeper and about 2 feet wider all the way around the root ball.

If you ever get to Springfield/Branson, there's a rack full of red wine here at the house and a very good local butcher shop. It would be my pleasure to fire up the grill, pop a cork or three and talk plants and gardening.

Pics of both species tomorrow.

As promised, pictures of the puny V x juddii. This first one is a wide view of the entire plant.

A close up of the leaves.

Another.

Noticed some new growth at the tips today.

On a more positive note, here's a couple shots of the V dentatum.

Individual.

And, the group.

Your pictures of the Judd viburnum are just about what I'd expect out of the first year after transplanting a specimen like that. It leafed out and flowered with respect to buds it had set prior to being moved. It now wishes it had its complete root system to support those leaves, and it is redirecting resources to regrow those roots. Good to see some tip growth; means those stems are alive and keepers. That shrub may decide to shed some excess canopy while regrowing roots. Don't be surprised if a few of the branches don't leaf out next year.

I'd use a broadcast fertilizer or a drench - root-feeding applicators are just basically point-source supply instead of covering the whole root system.

How 'bout them arrowwoods! I'm thinking you want to hide that whole one-story ranch residence?

If I do get down your way, I'll sure expect you to show me those refreshments. Talk - can do.

Thanks.

You know, when you plant seedlings that are smaller than a pencil and about 2 feet tall, you don't expect to cover the side of a house, even when you read the descriptions. I hope they will settle down about eave height and adopt (or adapt to being pruned to) a somewhat columnar shape

I just got some hydrolyzed fish fertilizer that the veggie garden loved. Think I'll give the Judd a shower and drench with that this evening when the sun gets lower in the sky. Watering resumes tonight, too. It finally turned summer. Not a cloud in the sky for the last couple of days and temps near 90.

Hello, I have a few different kinds of viburnum but the one I am looking for is the old fashioned huge "snowball" blooming get huge tree viburnum. I live in zone 7a in Oklahoma. My great grandmother had a huge snowball tree in her yard. I would love to have one like that. I have tried several differnt varieties but everytime I think I have it, it doesn't bloom like my great grandmother's tree.

So please help what variety or name am I looking for?

Amber_lee:

You are describing the Chinese snowball viburnum, Viburnum macrocephalum. Huge is the right word to describe the flowering heads, and this plant makes up into quite a large shrub to small tree in stature. Here is the PlantFiles entry:

http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/83632/

Here is a picture from a plant at Bernheim Arboretum in Clermont, KY.

Here is an older plant at Whitehall (an historic home in Louisville KY) with people for scale.

Thank you so much. That shrub/tree does indeed look like the tree in my great grandmother's yard that I loved so much.

Here is a good place to start your search for the viburnum you want, from the Garden Watch Dog site here:

http://davesgarden.com/products/gwd/c/5988/

Gary and Susan are good people, good growers, and growing good plants out in the severe conditions of the Plains.

Thank you. When I went to plantfiles it said two vendors had it for sale but only one of them did. I checked a few other places and they didn't have any. I sent an email to Classic Viburnums asking about it. Hopefully they will have one.

I did see some other varieties that were supposed to be very fragrant. I may need more than the Chinese Snowball Bush. LOL

As I often say:

You can't have too many viburnums...

Thank you VV. I received an email from Classic Viburnums today. Not only do they have the Chinese Snowball but at a very reasonable price! The price is a lot better than the only other place I found it on. Also they will resume shipping in Sept. which means I only have to wait just a little while. I am so pleased.

The other place wanted $19.95 for a 4" pot where CV just wants $10.95 for a 1 gallon and $19.95 for a 2 gallon pot. I am going to see if they have those other Virburnum shrubs that I saw when looking for the Chinese Snowball.

Thank you again. Amber lee