Viburnum plicatum f. plicatum (snowball)

[ForrestW]

Hi, could you tell me how many flushes of growth you get with your viburnum? If you do a mid season pruning, will it respond? I grew a viburnum trilobum (American high bush cranberry) in a pot for a bit and it just wanted to send out one huge leggy burst of long shoots in the spring. yours looks super nice and like it has manageable internodes.

Good morning, Thanks for the comments. I have never done a full defoliation but pretty much every year I do a partial. I begin with just removing the larger leaves early on, and then in May/early June I would usually see a second flush on parts of the tree extending and I would then take about 1/3 of the leaves off based on the overall design. This plant has been in a pot for probably 25 years and over the last 4-5 they were getting smaller and smaller, which has helped a little with internode distance. But, often when I get that second flush, if a spring internode was too long I cut it back to a back bud. Sometimes at the base of this year growth, other times just a little further back.

 

[ForrestW]

I love this tree, especially because you don't often see viburnum. I think you have done amazing because the internodes can definitely be long.

I'm currently working with a couple blackhaw viburnum. Viburnum Prunifolium.

As you pointed out the foliage of most viburnum species is incredibly decorative. With most having lovely flowers and fruit.

In your experience do you cutback in fall or before bud break?

Thanks, I agree- the foliage is the feature of this tree-- the growth is just going to be a bit wild and corse. I wire a little (as you can see) but it has a been an enjoyable species to work with. I do not tend to do much heavy fall pruning, primarily because I almost always do a late may early June cut back, and I do not get heavy branches from that second flush. I generally cut buds every spring to balance the growth and visual mass as I see them opening up, but not a lot of larger cuts in the early spring. The flowers on this one are nice, a bit large for its overall size, but the snowball clusters of flowers are smaller now then they were 5-7 years ago and are less snowball, and at time closer to golf ball. I usually get a second flower in late summer as well, now as prolific, but still a little treat.

 

[gooeytek]

whoa, that's a beautiful tree.

 

[Asymetrix]

Thanks, I agree- the foliage is the feature of this tree-- the growth is just going to be a bit wild and corse. I wire a little (as you can see) but it has a been an enjoyable species to work with. I do not tend to do much heavy fall pruning, primarily because I almost always do a late may early June cut back, and I do not get heavy branches from that second flush. I generally cut buds every spring to balance the growth and visual mass as I see them opening up, but not a lot of larger cuts in the early spring. The flowers on this one are nice, a bit large for its overall size, but the snowball clusters of flowers are smaller now then they were 5-7 years ago and are less snowball, and at time closer to golf ball. I usually get a second flower in late summer as well, now as prolific, but still a little treat.

Thanks for the response. I think I will try that this season.

 

[ForrestW]

End of season update-- So I showed the tree at Bonsai Central and am happy with the way it looked for the show in may. That is the first shot, then when I got home I decided it would not be shown again for a while and I did a good bit of wiring (second photo). The last photo is just how it looks now. I choose to let any second/third flush this summer just stay on for the health of the plant. I will prune it back and wire again in March, and may change the pot again. I like the proportions and color, but I want to make a more pronounced rim.