Scientific Name:
Viburnum opulus
var.
opulus
Pronunciation:
vye-BUR-num OP-you-lus
Common Name:
European cranberry bush, European snowball
Family Name:
Viburnaceae
Plant Type:
Flowering cut plant, Shrub - deciduous
Key ID Features:
Shrub up to 4m tall; leaves opposite, blades three-lobed; rounded, 5-10cm long x 4-9cm wide, lower surfave usually pubescent; petiole with narrow groove and 2-7 disc-like glands; cymes of most cultivars forming a rounded ball or "pompom", 4-8cm wide, florets creamy-white, about 1.5cm wide; drupe cranberry-like, round, about 6mm wide, bright red (absent in some cvs.). Winter ID: smooth grey bark, twigs glabrous, lateral buds smooth, most about 7mm long; leaf scars V to crescent shaped, each with 3 vein scars.
Habit:
Upright
Form:
Round, Vase
Texture:
Coarse
Mature Height:
3 - 5m
Mature Spread:
3 - 4m
Growth Rate:
Fast
Origin:
Africa, Europe
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 3: (-40 to -34 °C)
Exposure:
Full sun, Part sun/part shade
Soil/Growing Medium:
Landscape Uses:
Attract birds, Mixed shrub border
Additional Info:
Google. Compare to V. var. americanum. "Snowball" cultivars shown include V. 'Roseum' (syn, V. 'Sterile').
Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Simple, Lobed
Arrangement:
Opposite
Texture/Venation:
Soft flexible
Surfaces:
Glabrous
Colour in Summer:
Dark-green
Colour in Fall:
Yellow, Red
Shapes:
Orbicular
Apices:
Obtuse
Bases:
Acute
Margins:
Dentate, Pinnately lobed
Inflorescence Type:
Cyme, Corymb-like, Panicle-like
Flower Morphology:
Flowers perfect
Number Of Petals:
5
Corolla Shape:
Rotate/stellate
Ovary Position:
Superior
Colour (petals):
Showy, White, Pink
Flower Time at Peak:
Apr, May, Jun
Additional Info:
Inflorescence lace-cap-like or rounded depending on cv. and may contain sterile flowers
Fruit Type:
Drupe, Edible, Aborted (hybrids) or absent
Fruit Colour:
Red
Fruiting Time:
Aug
Additional Info:
Showy, Edible, Persistent, Sterile hybrids exist
Bark or Stem Colour:
Leaf Bud Type:
Ovoid, Stalked
Leaf Scar Shape:
Crescent shaped
Pest Susceptibility:
Aphids or adelgids, Beetles or weevils (Disease resistant, Deer resistant, Rabbit resistant)
Specific Pests:
Course(s):
- Level 4 Apprenticeship
Location(s):
- (ONW) Overpass North side West : confirm ID
- (TFL) Turf Field Lab
- (TFLS) Turf Field Lab South