Viburnum rafinesquianum

Description

Downy arrowwood is a smaller size Viburnum similar with V. dentatum, not that well known though. It grows well in dry conditions and loamy/clay/rocky substrates, another quality making it a good candidate for our gardens. The foliage will turn bright red in the fall when grown with enough sun.

Showy flat-topped clusters of white flowers appear in late spring and are followed by attractive blue-black fruits (conspicuous flattened drupes), which are consumed by birds.

Germination: all Viburnum seeds have epicotyl dormancy: meaning, they requires first a warm period (2 months) for the root growth, followed by a cold period for the shoot growth (other known examples various peonies, Hydrophyllum spp., Lilium canadense…).

In translation: when sown right away in the late summer/early fall, the seeds may have time for the radicles to break dormancy and then, after the winter (cold period) grow the first shoots in the spring; if not and when sown later in the winter, they will germinate in the second year after sowing.