I'm designing a new front landscape for our house to put in this coming fall. I came across the Rusty Blackhaw, Viburnum rufidulum, in my Native Plants of Texas book, and am really intrigued. From the sounds of it, I think it'd look good to have one near each far corner of the house. Right now there are some crepe myrtles, but they're pretty scraggly, and the rest of our yard is overdone with them, so I think we need something more interesting.
I'd love to hear what anyone has to say about this tree- how it has done for them, care, any problems or quirks about it, etc. Also, about how wide does the crown spread so that I can plan to have it far enough from the corner of the house that it has room to grow well?
Experience with Rusty Blackhaw?
I planted a RBH Viburnum in my back flowerbed 2 years ago, and it is growing nicely. As you can see, it is bursting with buds right now. It's my understanding that it will grow to a medium-sized tree, so I would hesitate to plant one too close to the house. I don't know of any problems with RBH Viburnums. They do produce berries, and to enhance the berry production they have to be cross-pollinated with another RBH Viburnum that it is not related to (which is very hard to find in the north Texas area, as all the nurseries buy from the same wholesaler). I would highly recommend this tree, but would not recommend planting one too near the house.
Carla
I just learned what this tree was. I posted a photo and Frostweed IDd it for me. It is growing as a volunteer on the dam. In full bloom and lovely.
I am sure you have researched this. I had to look it up after finding its' ID. It is a preferred food of the eastern bluebird and cedar waxwing. Height is 16-18 feet. I agree with Carla ~ plant it but at a distance from your home.
