Viburnum rhytidophyllum

Leatherleaf viburnum is an evergreen shrub native to central and western China and it is one of the hardiest evergreen and undemanding shrubs which is why you often meet it in urban greenery and parks where it requires no maintenance. It first appeared in Europe thanks to Ernest Wilson's expedition to China. He brought it to England where it was introduced in 1900 by Veitch Nursery, one of the largest European family-run nurseries that operated from 1808 until 1969.

Leatherleaf viburnum features evergreen, stiff leaves, which are leathery but thinner than the leaves of cherry laurels or hollies. They are narrowly ovate to lanceolate, 10 to 20 cm long, conspicuously wrinkled, bright to dark green and glossy above, and reticulated with yellow-gray indumentum on the reverse. With the arrival of strong frost, they curl up slightly and hang down, as if withered, but as soon as the frost passes, they unfurl again and slightly straighten back towards the sun.

From May to June, it blooms profusely with 10-20 cm wide umbel-like trusses composed of creamy white flowers. Thanks to numerous pale yellow to beige stamens the inflorescence colour has a warm hue. In late summer they are followed by very attractive, glossy fruits which are red at first, for about a month, changing to black later. They are not poisonous nor edible and provide plenty of bird food just like flowers have a lot of nectar for the bees and other insects.

It grows fast and forms upright, dense shrubs, somewhat globular in shape but spreading with age. Mature untrimmed plants reach about 3 meters in height and 4 meters in width but in private gardens the plant is often kept smaller by pruning. Any pruning should be done immediately after flowering. You will lose fruit in autumn but not flowers the following spring, which would certainly happen if you pruned in spring. You can also prune it after the fruits have turned black but then you are running the risk of limiting the volume of flowers for the following season. Even with little or no maintenance, the shrub will make a beautiful specimen in any ornamental garden and will also work well as a hedge that absorbs dust from adjacent roads.

Leatherleaf viburnum is undemanding as to the soil type and will grow in any well-drained soil in full sun or partial shade. It doesn't tolerate waterlogging but withstands some road salt. Some gardeners recommend avoiding exposed sites to protect the leaves from wind and frost damage but we have never experienced such a problem. Hardy to min. -30 °C (USDA zone 5).

Last update 19-01-2007; 04-03-2024