Arrow Wood, Southern arrowwood, Southern Arrowwood Viburnum
Viburnum dentatum
Family: Adoxaceae
What it is like
Bloom Color: White. Main Bloom Time: Late spring. Form: Rounded, Upright or erect.
Viburnum dentatum is a deciduous Shrub growing to 4.5 m (14ft 9in) at a fast rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 2. It is in flower from July to August. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Insects. The plant is not self-fertile. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil.
Height (m): 4.5
Where it is found
Moist soils.
Eastern N. America - New Brunswick to Ontario and New York, south to Georgia and Florida.
Conservation Status:
Countries/locations it is found in
How it is used
Food
Rating: 2
Fruit - raw or cooked. A pleasantly sweet flavour, but there is very little edible flesh surrounding a relatively large seed. The fruit is up to 9.5mm in diameter.
Medicine
Rating: 1
A decoction of the twigs has been taken by women to prevent conception. A poultice of the plant has been applied to the swollen legs of a woman after she has given birth. Both of the above uses are for the sub-species V. dentatum lucidum. Ait..
Birthing aid: Used in facilitating birth, but not just to cause uterine contrctions.
Contraceptive: Prevents fertilization occurring in females.
Other
Rating:
How it is grown
Landscape Uses:Border, Massing, Screen, Seashore, Specimen, Woodland garden. An easily grown plant, it succeeds in most soils but is ill-adapted for poor soils and for dry situations. It prefers a deep rich loamy soil in sun or semi-shade. Best if given shade from the early morning sun in spring. Plants are self-incompatible and need to grow close to a genetically distinct plant in the same species in order to produce fruit and fertile seed. Special Features:Attracts birds, North American native, Attracts butterflies, Blooms are very showy.
Propagating it: Seed - best sown in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe. Germination can be slow, sometimes taking more than 18 months. If the seed is harvested 'green' (when it has fully developed but before it has fully ripened) and sown immediately in a cold frame, it should germinate in the spring. Stored seed will require 2 months warm then 3 months cold stratification and can still take 18 months to germinate. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in a cold frame or greenhouse. Plant out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer of the following year. Cuttings of soft-wood, early summer in a frame. Pot up into individual pots once they start to root and plant them out in late spring or early summer of the following year. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, 5 - 8 cm long with a heel if possible, July/August in a frame. Plant them into individual pots as soon as they start to root. These cuttings can be difficult to overwinter, it is best to keep them in a greenhouse or cold frame until the following spring before planting them out. Cuttings of mature wood, winter in a frame. They should root in early spring - pot them up when large enough to handle and plant them out in the summer if sufficient new growth is made, otherwise keep them in a cold frame for the next winter and then plant them out in the spring. Layering of current seasons growth in July/August. Takes 15 months.
Best place to grow: Woodland Garden Sunny Edge; Dappled Shade;
Habit: Shrub
Hardiness: 2-8
Growth: Fast
Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)
Shade: Semi-shade, no shade
Moisture: Moist