How to Grow and Care for Chinese Snowball Viburnum

Too much shade will cause the blooms to become sparse and the shrub to become leggy.

Soil

This beautiful shrub needs well-drained, slightlyacidicsoil for best performance.

However, it tolerates a wide range of soil conditions and even tolerates slightly alkaline soil.

Avoid soils that hold onto too much water, as Chinese snowball viburnum does not like to be waterlogged.

Keep the soil evenly moist throughout the year.

Be wary of overwatering, though, especially if the plant is growing in dense soil.

A mature shrub can tolerate some drought.

For best results, use an all-purpose balanced fertilizer that is formulated for woody shrubs.

For the amount to use, follow product label instructions.

The wild form is sometimes known asV.

macrocephalumf.keteleeri,and it is less showy than the cultivated variety usually sold commercially.

Here are some hybrid viburnums that haveV.

If you are planning a hard rejuvenation pruning, winter is a good time to perform this task.

For best results, take cuttings in the spring from shoots with vigorous new growth.

Zone 6 gardeners might want to provide some form of windbreak against harsh winter winds.

However, very humid climates can make this species more susceptible to mild fungal diseases.

Chinese snowball viburnum typically blooms between April and May.

The flowers on Chinese snowball viburnum typically last for a few weeks at a time.

Each fragrance-free flower cluster can grow up to 8 inches wide.

If surrounding trees have grown up to shade your shrub, the shade might be hindering flower production.

Good pruning of surrounding trees might improve the sun exposure and return your shrub to profuse blooming.

Failure to bloom is sometimes traced to poorly timed pruning.

Cutting off dead blooms does not hurt this plant, and it can also encourage new blooms to form.

In the right conditions, these can be surprisingly large shrubs.

If a Chinese snowball viburnum is overwhelming its space, perform a hard rejuvenation pruning in late winter.

You’ll be rewarded with a denser, more compact shrub that flowers intensely within a year.

Such hard pruning should be performed every few years.

Leggy sparseness is sometimes the result of a plant growing in too much shade.

Pruning surrounding trees to provide your Chinese snowball viburnum with more sunlight may help it become fuller.

Even a few weeks of no water can cause dieback to begin.