Korean Spice Viburnum - Karen Russ

Hi, Im Karen Russ, a horticulturist with the Home & Garden Information Center at Clemson Extension.

Today Ill be talking about Korean spice viburnum, Viburnum carlesii.

Good morning. Were in the Hosta Garden section of the South Carolina Botanical Garden this morning, and I wanted to talk about one of my favorite, very fragrant shrubs. This is Korean spice viburnum.

This is an Asian viburnum. It does well in the upstate, in either full sun or part shade. Its probably happiest in either morning sun and afternoon shade, or filtered light throughout the day. It blooms during the early spring mid to late March through early April. This plant gets between 4 to 8 to possibly 10 feet tall depending on the variety you get. The leaves as they expand this will become a very full, dense, thoroughly foliaged plant. In the fall it has fantastic leaf color, anywhere between a burgundy red and a deep orange, depending on the variety and growing conditions.

Like most viburnums, it likes a rich woodsy soil. When youre preparing a bed, if you have straight clay, make sure to dig in at least 10 to 20 percent good rich organic matter. Composted leaves, composted pine bark would be great. You want to avoid overhead irrigation hitting the leaves. You want to make sure it doesnt go into drought stress, so give it good watering during the summer heat. Avoid over-crowding. You want good air circulation around the plant.

This is a very easy, wonderful plant to grow in your own home garden. It contributes a fabulous scent. The scent is of cloves and it carries for a great distance.

Again, this is Korean spice viburnum, Viburnum carlesii.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Clemson University
• PSA
• HGIC
• Korean spice viburnum
• Viburnum carlesii

[ninaluvsutube]

I have 3 of these in the rear of my condo and they smell WONDERFUL in April on into May!!! I had been trying to identify exactly what they were, all along thinking they were lilac bushes. Thanks so much for the video!!

[gardenmagik]

Hey Karen! 5 stars !

I absolutely Love this Viburnum...

They do exceptionally well here in Georgia especially if they get some afternoon shade. I dont think it's crazy about our humidity, but we keep them selectively pruned to allow good air circulation... and it is definitely an art to prune them!

They do ok in our southern clay, but grow larger when in an amended soil...

Great video... Thanks!