Viburnum odoratissimum

Viburnum odoratissimum, commonly known as sweet viburnum, is a shrub or small tree in the family Adoxaceae. It is native to Asia, and commonly cultivated as a garden ornamental elsewhere.

Description

A large evergreen shrub. It grows 4 m high and spreads 2 m across. The stem is erect and branching. The leaves are glossy green, oval and thick. The flowers are in broad cone shaped arrangements. They are small, white and have a scent. The fruit are red berries which turn black when ripe.

Edible Uses

The fruit is edible, though no further details are recorded. The ovoid fruit is about 10mm long and contains a single large seed.

Medicinal Uses

None known

Distribution

It is a subtropical plant. It does best in a light to medium, well-drained soil. It needs an open, sunny position. It grows up to 2,500 m above sea level. In Melbourne Botanical Gardens. Mt Cootha Botanical Gardens. Arboretum Tasmania. In Yunnan.

Where It Grows

Asia, Australia, China*, Hawaii, Himalayas, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Laos, Myanmar, Pacific, Philippines, SE Asia, Taiwan, Tasmania, Thailand, USA, Vietnam,

Cultivation

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 not very hardy in Britain, they do not succeed in the London area but make handsome bushes in the south-western counties. 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. There is at least one named variety, selected for its ornamental value. 'Nanum' has a dwarf habit. The flowers are sweetly scented.

Propagation

Seed is best sown in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe. Germination can be slow, sometimes taking more than 18 months. Seed harvested green — fully developed but not yet fully ripe — and sown immediately in a cold frame should germinate the following spring. Stored seed needs 2 months of warm stratification followed by 3 months of cold, and may still take 18 months to germinate. Prick seedlings into individual pots when large enough to handle, grow on in a cold frame or greenhouse, and plant out in late spring or early summer of the following year. Softwood cuttings taken in early summer in a frame should be potted individually once rooting begins and planted out the following late spring or early summer. Half-ripe cuttings, 5–8 cm long with a heel if possible, taken in July or August in a frame should be potted as soon as they start to root. These can be difficult to overwinter and are best kept under glass until the following spring. Mature wood cuttings taken in winter in a frame should root in early spring; pot when large enough and plant out in summer if sufficient new growth has been made, otherwise overwinter in a cold frame and plant out the following spring. Layering of the current season's growth in July or August takes 15 months.

Other Uses

None known Special Uses Scented Plants

Notes

There are about 150 Viburnum species. Also put in the family Caprifoliaceae.

Synonyms

Also Known As

Pohon piburnum manis, Shanhushu

References (9)

• Bot. Reg. 6: t. 456. 1820
• Hibbert, M., 2002, The Aussie Plant Finder 2002, Florilegium. p 306
• Kermath, B. M., et al, 2014, Food Plants in the Americas: A survey of the domesticated, cultivated and wild plants used for Human food in North, Central and South America and the Caribbean. On line draft. p 907
• Lord, E.E., & Willis, J.H., 1999, Shrubs and Trees for Australian gardens. Lothian. p 269
• Plants for a Future database, The Field, Penpol, Lostwithiel, Cornwall, PL22 0NG, UK. http://www.scs.leeds.ac.uk/pfaf/

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