Walter's Viburnum (Viburnum obovatum)

Quick Facts

• Type: shrub
• Size: 8-15 ft tall
• Sun: full
• Water: moderate
• Soil: Adaptable; moist to average
• USDA zones: 7-10

Fragrant white spring flowers, black fall berries, and hosts spring azure butterflies.

A top-tier native hedge or specimen statewide; the dwarf forms fit foundation plantings.

In the Landscape

A top-tier native hedge, screen, or accent shrub, and the dwarf Florida-developed forms work beautifully in foundation plantings. It can be sheared like boxwood or left natural, and it is notably hurricane wind resistant.

Care & Propagation

Plant in fall in full sun to shade in moist, fertile soil, spacing 4 to 6 feet apart for a hedge. Water until established, then it is quite adaptable. Prune right after spring flowering if shaping is needed, since flower buds form on the previous year's wood; keep suckers in check with timely pruning.

Cuttings are the reliable route: take softwood cuttings in late spring or early summer and root them with rooting hormone. Seed needs scarification and may sit in the ground for several years before germinating, though the plant self-sows on its own.

Wildlife Value

The fragrant white spring flowers feed bees and butterflies, and it is a larval host plant for the spring azure butterfly. The black fall berries are eaten by songbirds, wild turkeys, and small mammals.

🌱 Fun fact: Two of the most popular dwarf forms, 'Mrs. Schiller's Delight' and 'Riefler's Dwarf', were developed in Florida specifically for home landscapes.

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🌴 In Florida

A top-tier native hedge or specimen statewide; the dwarf forms fit foundation plantings.

🌿 Keep exploring

More Florida natives worth meeting:

• Adam's Needle (Yucca filamentosa)
• Allegheny chinquapin (Castanea pumila)
• American Beautyberry (Callicarpa americana)