Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Fragrant Viburnum, Deciduous Shrub of the Day

Viburnum carlesii 'Aurora'
    Koreanspice Viburnum,  Fragrant Viburnum

Type    Shrub, woody plant
Hardy range    4B to 8A
Height    5' to 8' / 1.60m to 2.40m
Spread    5' to 8' / 1.60m to 2.40m
Growth rate    Average
Form    Oval and upright or erect
Exposure    Partial shade or partial sun to full sun
Persistence    Deciduous

Bloom Color    White
Bloom Time    Spring

The flowers are fragrant and showy.

Environment
This plant tolerates drought and some salt.
This plant will grow in very dry soil.
Suitable soil is well-drained/loamy, sandy or clay.
The pH preference is an acidic to slightly alkaline (less than 6.8 to 7.7) soil.

Leaf Color    Green
Fall Color    Purple and red
This plant has attractive fall colors.

Culture Notes
Likes acid soil kept moist for best development.  Korean Spice Viburnum grows best in a sunny, open location with loose, well-drained soil.  Transplanting may be difficult and poor growth results from overcrowding or shading.  Korean Spice Viburnum has a moderate growth rate and is 4 to 8 feet tall and spreads 6 to 8 feet.  The fragrant, pink-tinged white flowers are produced in early spring and the fall color is reddish to wine red.  Fruits are produced but are usually eaten by the birds. This plant is considered mostly allergy free and causes little or no allergy problems in most people.

Planting and establishing shrubs

The most common cause of young plant failure is planting too deep.  Plant the root ball no deeper than it was in the nursery.  In most instances, the root flare zone (point where the top-most root in the root ball originates from the trunk) should be located just above the landscape soil surface. Sometimes plants come from the nursery with soil over the root flare. If there is soil over this area, scrape it off.  The planting hole should be at least twice the width of the root ball, preferably wider.  In all but exceptional circumstances where the soil is very poor, there is no need to incorporate anything into the backfill soil except the loosened soil that came out of the planting hole.  Never place ANY soil over the root ball. If a row or grouping of plants is to be installed, excavating or loosening the soil in the entire bed and incorporating organic matter enhances root growth and establishment rate.

Weed suppression during establishment is essential.  Apply a 3-inch thick layer of mulch around the plant to help control weed growth.  Keep it at least 10 inches from the trunk.  If you apply it over the root ball, apply only a one or two inch layer.   This allows rainwater and air to easily enter the root ball and keeps the trunk dry.  Placing mulch against the trunk or applying too thick a layer above the root ball can kill the plant by oxygen starvation, death of bark, stem and root diseases, prevention of hardening off for winter, vole and other rodent damage to the trunk, keeping soil too wet, or repelling water.  Regular irrigation through the first growing season after planting encourages rapid root growth, which is essential for quick plant establishment.


Rabbit Resistant Perennials

Rabbits are becoming more and more of a nuisance in landscape plantings. I am sorry to say there is no perfect list of plants that are rabbit resistant. Animals that are hungry will eat almost anything. Here are some things you can do to help keep bunnies and other small critters out of your landscape.

o Remove protective cover such as brush piles where rabbits hide and nest.
o Keep some open areas in the landscape. Smaller critters normally avoid areas of open space to steer clear of predators.
o Repellents don’t always work and what works in one yard may not work in another. Read the labels and make certain the product specifies rabbit. Rabbits don’t respond to odor repellents as deer do so most deer repellents won’t affect rabbits.
o Newly introduced plantings or recently moved perennials are more apt to be nibbled because of curiosity. So repellents can help to detour curiosity. Once the plants are more mature they are less likely to be eaten.

Please be patient and remember what is resilient in one yard may not be in another. Rabbits in one region will have different tastes than rabbits in another. There is no perfect list and we can not guarantee that rabbits will not eat the below listed perennials.
The list below was compiled from 3 different reputable lists of rabbit tolerant perennials. However ‘Beechwood Landscape Architecture and Construction’ is not responsible for any plants that may be eaten by rabbits.

Common Name
Alumroot or Coral Bells
Anemone
Astilbe
Aster
Bee balm
Bergenia Heartleaf
Blanket Flower
Bleeding Heart
Bugbane
Bugle Weed
Bugloss
Cat Mint
Columbine
Cornflower
Crocosmia
Daylilly
Dead Nettle
Foxglove
Geraniums or Cranes Bill
Goat’s Beard
Goldenrod
Hosta
Hyssop
Iris
Joe Pye Weed
Jupiter’s Beard
Knot weed or Fleece Flower
Lady’s Mantle
Lamb’s Ear
Lavender
Lilly of the Valley
Lenten Rose
Lung Wart
Lilyturf
Ornamental onions - Chives Yarrow
Penstemon
Peony
Creeping Phlox
Pincushion Flower
Evening Primrose
Red Hot Poker
Rodger’s Flower
Stone Crop
Spiderwort
Speedwell
Spurge
Sweet Woodruff
Yarrow
Blue Fescue Grass
Maiden Grass
Mondo Grass
Pampas Grass

Latin Name/Common Name
Achillea/Yarrow
Agastache/Hyssop
Ajuga/Bugle Weed
Alchemilla/Lady’s Mantle
Allium/Ornamental onions or Chives
Anemone/Windflower
Aquilegia/Columbine
Aruncas/Goat’s Beard
Aster/Aster
Astilbe/False Spirea
Bergenia/Heartleaf
Brunnera/Bugloss
Centaurea/Cornflower
Centranthus/Jupiter’s Beard
Cimicifuga/Snakeroot or Bugbane
Convallaria/ Lilly of the Valley
Corcosmia/Montbretia
Chrysanthemum/Mums
Dicentra/Bleeding Heart
Digitalis/Foxglove
Eupatorium/Joe Pye Weed
Euphorbia/Spurge
Gaillardia/Blanket Flower
Gallium/Sweet Woodruff
Geranium/Cranes Bill
Helleborus/Lenten Rose
Hemerocallis/Daylilly
Heuchera/Coral Bells
Hosta/Plantain Lily
Iris/Iris
Kniphofia/Red Hot Poker
Lamium/Dead Nettle
Lavandula/Lavender
Monarda/Bee balm
Nepeta/Cat Mint
Oenothera/Evening Primrose
Paeonia/Peony
Penstemon/Beard Tongue
Polygonum/Fleece Flower
Phlox/creeping Phlox
Pulmonaria/Lung Wart
Rodgersia/Rodger’s Flower
Scabiosa/Pincushion Flower
Sedum/Stone Crop
Solidago/Goldenrod
Stachys/Lamb’s Ear
Tradescantia/Spiderwort
Veronica/Speedwell
Cortaderia/Pampas Grass
Festuca/Blue Fescue Grass
Miscanthus/Maiden Grass
Ophiopogon/Mondo Grass