Golden Acre Home & Garden Centre's Plant Library

Brand:  Proven Winners

Description:

A fairly large shrub that makes an excellent hedge or foundation planting; showy clusters of fragrant, creamy white flowers in early spring, followed by green berries that turn brilliant red in late summer; plant with a pollinator to produce more fruit

Ornamental Features

Red Balloon® Viburnum features showy clusters of lightly-scented creamy white flowers at the ends of the branches in mid spring. The red fruits which fade to black over time are held in abundance in spectacular clusters from late summer to late fall. It has forest green deciduous foliage which emerges coppery-bronze in spring. The textured narrow leaves do not develop any appreciable fall colour.

Landscape Attributes

Red Balloon® Viburnum is a multi-stemmed deciduous shrub with a more or less rounded form. Its average texture blends into the landscape, but can be balanced by one or two finer or coarser trees or shrubs for an effective composition.

This is a relatively low maintenance shrub, and should only be pruned after flowering to avoid removing any of the current season's flowers. It is a good choice for attracting birds to your yard, but is not particularly attractive to deer who tend to leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Red Balloon® Viburnum is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• Mass Planting
• Hedges/Screening
• General Garden Use

Planting & Growing

Red Balloon® Viburnum will grow to be about 8 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 8 feet. It has a low canopy with a typical clearance of 1 foot from the ground, and is suitable for planting under power lines. It grows at a medium rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for 40 years or more. While it is considered to be somewhat self-pollinating, it tends to set heavier quantities of fruit with a different variety of the same species growing nearby.

This shrub does best in full sun to partial shade. It prefers to grow in average to moist conditions, and shouldn't be allowed to dry out. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments. This particular variety is an interspecific hybrid.