Viburnum obovatum

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Walter's Viburnum

Adoxaceae

Plant Specifics

Form:Shrub
Size:10-15 (30) ft by tall  by 10-15 ft wide with new plants growing from rhyzomes (underground stems) to form clones of substantial width unless removed.
Life Span:Long-lived perennial
Flower Color:White
Fruit Color:Red,black
Phenology:Tardily deciduous leafing out shortly after the old leaves fall. Blooms late winter-early spring. Fruits ripen late summer-early fall. Life span likely >50 yrs (Nelson 2003).
Noted for:Showy flowers, Showy fruits, Hurricane wind resistance

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:Specimen plant, hedge or screen plant. Can be allowed to form a thicket, sheared, or kept pruned into a tree.  Fast growing.
Propagation:Cuttings. Seeds require scarification and may take several years to germinate.
Availability:Big box stores, Native nurseries, FNPS plant sales, Quality nurseries
Light: Full Sun,  Part Shade
Moisture Tolerance:
always floodedextremely dry
 (Usually moist, occasional inundation ----- to ----- Somewhat long very dry periods)
Moisture Tolerance: Usually moist, occasional inundation ----- to ----- Somewhat long very dry periods
Salt Water Flooding Tolerance:Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water.
Salt Spray/ Salty Soil Tolerance:Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray
Soil or other substrate:Humus (organic, upland), Sand
Soil pH:Acidic

Ecology

Wildlife:
  

Birds and other wildlife consume the fruit.

Insects:
   

Larval host for the spring azure butterfly (Celastrina ladon).

Both native and non-native viburnums (Viburnum spp.) attract a wide range of pollinators with strong scents that promise either a nectar or pollen reward. Scarab beetles of the genus Cetonia are particularly interesting viburnum pollinators, possessing branched hairs on their bodies that are similar to pollen-collecting hairs found on bees. These hairs ensure a better chance of cross-pollination for self-sterile viburnum species. Viburnums with long corolla tubes and sweet scents are most often pollinated by species belonging to the order Lepidoptera, while viburnums with shorter corolla tubes and muskier odors receive frequent visits from flies and small bees. This relationship corresponds to the size of the insect mouthparts. Most viburnums produce very little nectar despite the wide range of pollinators..  The primary reward, at least for bees, is not nectar but pollen (Arnold Arboretum).

Native Habitats:Riverine forests, swamp borders, hydric hammocks. Also cultivated as an ornamental.

Distribution and Planting Zones

Natural Range in Florida
USDA Zones

Suitable to grow in:
10A 8A 8B 9A 9B 

USDA zones are based on minimum winter temperatures

Comments

General Comments:The name Walter's viburnum honors Thomas Walter (1740-89), English-born planter of South Carolina, who described this species in his Flora Caroliniana.