Plant of the Week
Summer Snowflake
Latin: Viburnum plicatum var. tomentosum
As gardeners, we tend to be greedy. We want plants that have it all: good
looks, lots of flowers, easy to grow and freedom from pests.
To help achieve that goal, the Arkansas Green Industry and horticulturists at
the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service have teamed up to
create the Arkansas Select program. Plants named as Arkansas Select winners are
relatively new items that we think provide gardeners with the kind of positive
gardening experience they are seeking.
One of the plants designated an Arkansas Select winner for 2004 is Summer
Snowflake Viburnum, a selection of the doublefile viburnum known officially as
Viburnum plicatum var. tomentosum. The doublefile viburnum is so
named because it blooms in clusters along the horizontal stems, with a row of
blossoms on each side of the stem, creating a double row.
This Japanese species is one of the most popular of the many viburnums in
cultivation. In the typical cultivar, the plant is as broad as it is tall with
the limbs arranged in horizontal layers. But in ‘Summer Snowflake,’ a selection
released from the University of British Columbia Botanic Garden, the plant is
decidedly tall and skinny. It can grow as tall as 15 feet but with a spread of
only 6 feet.
Most consider viburnums to be "shrubs," but they are on the large end of the
shrub range or the runtish end for trees. This plant is deciduous with leaves a
bright, mid-green color with a pleated appearance. Fall color is a rusty red and
quite handsome.
Summer Snowflake first blooms around the end of April or the first of May,
about a week after dogwoods finish. The white flowers are individually about the
size of a quarter, but borne in a flat head that is to four inches across. The
blooms splayed on the horizontal branches give the plants a wedding-cake kind of
look when they appear.
Other than the upright growth form, the other thing that sets Summer
Snowflake apart from other viburnums is that it is a repeat bloomer. Admittedly,
the first bloom of the season is much more showy than the ones to follow, but
about once a month, additional blooms pop out here and there on the ends of new
growth.
Gardeners favor viburnums because they have multiple seasons of interest;
showy flowers, bright red berries and good fall color. Summer Snowflake has two
of the three - usually it sets few berries. Part of the reason for its ability
to continue flowering during the growing season is because it does not have a
load of berries to support.
The upright growth form and repeat blooming habit makes Summer Snowflake an
ideal plant for use near an entryway. It could be used near the entry to the
home or beside the garden gate in the kind of location where you might use a
Japanese maple or dogwood. In addition, the tall, narrow form of the shrub makes
it ideal for an informal screen that would not have to be pruned.
Summer Snowflake, like most viburnums, grows best in sunny locations with
good garden loam. But it is not overly picky about its growing conditions. It
will grow and flower in semi-shade; areas too shady for bermudagrass to grow but
where shade tolerant grasses would be expected to survive. It has good drought
tolerance once established, but plants in droughty locations will have few
repeat blooms. It does not seem bothered by insect or disease problems.
By: Gerald Klingaman, retired
Extension Horticulturist
- Ornamentals
Extension News -
May 21, 2004
Back to Archives Q - T
|
