Help with Snowball Viburnum blooms changing

I have 2 Snowball Viburnum shrubs planted about 5yrs ago - each on opposite sides of the yard. Both have grown into beautiful, full shrubs and have bloomed every spring. My question is: 2yrs-3 yrs ago one of the Viburnums had a few flat, lacy flowers (that look like the flowers I've seen in pictures of Doublefile) mixed in with the snowballs. This year about half of the flowers on this one shrub were of this type! How do I get my snowballs back!

Sounds like you may have purchased grafted plants? The scion wood (top part) was of the snowball variety you wanted, and the rootstock could be the (plain) doublefile form. If you remember where you bought them from, you might inquire as to whether this was possible. Most viburnums these days are grown from rooted cuttings or seed, not grafted.

Examine the stems with the "offensive" doublefile lacecap flowers, and see if they don't originate from the base of the plant. If so, simply prune them out and leave the snowball flowering stems intact. This should keep you in good stead (till you get more new suckers with lacecap flowers).

If you have stems with snowball AND lacecap flowers on them, then you have a freak plant. Haven't seen that before; you might make a lot of money trying to sell it to someone like dybbuk who relishes anything unusual.

It's probably past the opportunity now, but next time take pictures of the situation for presentation here which will help in diagnosis and solution.

Thank you for the information ViburnumValley. Right after reading your response, I took a look at the base of the bush and there are 8-10 stalks coming out of the ground - no telling if it has been grafted (from above ground anyway) and no telling at this time of year which stalks are the offenders. I did call the nursery and spoke with the tree and shrub specialist and he said that they do not graft the Viburnums, but what may have happened is a "plug" of a different type (such as Doublefile) may have been accidently combined in the pot with the Snowball type... Just my luck.... The only thing that still confuses me a bit is - if say 1 plug of the 8 or 10 was of a different type, then how could the bush have gradually produced more and more of the lacecaps each year? Half of the bush had lacecaps this year. You would think that the "percentage" would stay about the same. I will check closely this spring and report back. (I will also keep my fingers crossed that I have a freak!) Thank you again.

The lacecaps are more refined and classier IMHO, and apparently more vigorous for you than the snowballs -- have you considered keeping them and getting rid of the snowball stems? Maybe it's fate intervening!

Guy S.

The lace caps are very pretty up close but not as outstanding from a distance (it is located near the back of the lot). The shrub is gorgeous and dispite being very close to a mature maple tree it seems to have no problem with the competition and still gets plenty of sun. If fate is intervening, then so be it. I thought there may have been a "simple" remedy out there I was unaware of as I am still a novice gardener. I will not attempt to try to fight with it while it's happy (I have more than enough routine pruning and deadheading to keep me occupied!)

By the way, I just noticed that you're a new member, so welcome aboard -- and I love the handle! You must be a Seinfeld fan!

Guy S.

Thank you, Guy! I am a Seinfeld fan. I just happened to see that episode a bit ago and thought of it while trying to come up with something for a handle. (I think my only serenity is the garden....)

I hate to be the one to tell you this, but I think it's also the name of an adult diaper!
:0)
Guy S.

Hmmmm...maybe I should change my handle to serenity_later...(much later!).

I bought three Japanese Snowball bushes and planted them in clay soil with some amendments last year, each bush had small blooms in the spring, shriveled up and that was it. The bushes get watered, have had some fertilizer but I don't know what else to do, the bushes get plenty of full sun. Any suggestions?

... 'Howdy' outdoorgarden ...

And a big ol 'hearty' welcome to DG .. to ya !!

An interesting questtion that needs some replies and assistance .. for sure.

However, since your post has sat idle for a few days now - - you may want to consider starting a new thread. Doing so, should increase the chances that the Trees & Shrubs gurus will sit up and take notice a wee quicker ... (hee)

Unfortunately, there are those few occasions of which other folks' inquiries sorta fall by the wayside (unwittingly) .. when posted within anothers' thread.

Please don't dismay - just put it 'out there' .. where it can be 'seen'!!

Glad to have you aboard.

- Magpye