Sweet Viburnum
Viburnum lentago L.
Viorne flexible
Also known as Nannyberry or Sheepberry
Native Range:
Commonly planted as an ornamental shrub or small tree (Zones CA2, NA2).
Leaves:
5-10 cm long, ovate to narrowly oval.
Tip is slender, sharp, and short-tapered; base is rounded.
Finely and sharply toothed.
Upper surface is yellowish-green, with tiny dark brown dots beneath.
Hairless.
Stalk is 1-2 cm long, grooved, and winged along each side by narrow extensions of the leaf blade.
Buds:
Terminal bud is 20-30 mm long, slender, naked, with one pair of brownish-gray granular immature leaves.
Terminal flower bud is about twice as long with a bulbous base.
Lateral buds are smaller.
Twigs:
Slender, smooth, light brown.
Emits an unpleasant odor when bruised.
Flowers:
Creamy white, borne in round-topped clusters 5-10 cm wide.
Several branches radiate from the shoot tip.
Fruits:
Bluish-black, 8-12 mm long.
Thin, sweet, edible flesh.
Vegetative Reproduction:
Can reproduce by root sprouts.
Bark:
Grayish-brown, with very small irregular scales.
Wood:
Hard, heavy, close-grained, dark brown.
Size and Form:
Large shrubs or very small trees, growing up to 10 m high and 15 cm in diameter.
Sweet Viburnum is such a lovely ornamental, and it's great to hear it can reproduce by root sprouts as well!