Help please - part 2

Not much of a flower, is it, Muddywellie - bet Fractal knows what it is! Is it fragrant?

Well I never promised you a big bouquet did I?! You're right though - its pretty pathetic - but it was the best I could do. Re the fragance - I couldn't really smell anything, but given the size of that flower - that's not surprising is it!

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I know some one will say its not but the leaves look like Vibernum bodnantence to me?

I just googled viburnum and I agree Drc726 - it does look like the right one "Japanese Snowball" apparently. Thanks both of you.

How and when do I prune though to get those big rounds of flowers - as you can see I am getting very little flowers, so must be doing something wrong.

Yea, Drc, already said in first part of this Q that it looks like a viburnum of some kind, but bodnatense has clusters of flowers, and most of the others have larger flowers. Have to scour my books on the morrow, Muddywellie.
Sorry posted at the same time; I'm not sure it is that, because of the flowers on it, though the leaves do look like it.

I do love the questions best of all, learn so much, I love the way this one drapes (in your other picture). fraid I'll pass on pruning it though. When I went to go to questions Bamboo the last one is on the top so I'm afraid I only saw that st first and thats why I said someone will say it isnt!

It might have been easier if you'd just posted the one Q, muddy! Just seen your description of clusters of whitish pink flowers - that means it is bodnatense, the basic one, and that's how the flowers are. Pruning is just cutting out older, central branches to ground level in early spring to allow regeneration from the centre of the plant.

You're still up as well, Drc! I didn't realise how late it was;-)

I was just thinking the same - lesson learned - one question only next time! When you say older central branches - I am confused! This bush has about 4 main stems which grow straight up from the ground - am I meant to remove one of those?? Sorry if this is a dim question - bear with me please!

Neither did I good night all.

If that's all there is, I wouldn't, so it sounds as if you shouldn't be pruning it at all - every time I've seen this shrub, though, its had several stems rising from the ground, is quite twiggy and its height is supposed to be up to 10 feet.

morning all sometimes at this time of year my bodnantense'dawn' has poor clusters of flowers(better later) but on a still day it still manages to scent the air --sort of apple blossom--

Viburnum for sure and possibly V. davidii, that has small single flowers which are not very showy.

Not davidii Owdboggy, I've got that, it only gets to five feet and the leaves are at least twice the size of the ones in this pic.

Dont think its davidii I have that much shorter

Well I'll be, an echo... !!

Viburnum Bodnantense "Dawn"
I have a couple and like Pamg said - at this time of year - it is flowering poorly but it comes into its own once the leaves are off. ..and of course through the winter. I only prune it after the flowers are over ..but have to admit it heads for the stars in wet summers like we have just had and I "top out" the long straggly growth now...in fact it is one of my jobs for this weekend!

But V. bodnantense in all its forms has a pink flower. Dawn is defintely pink, Charles Lamont light pink and the other one too is more pink than white. I have all three plus about 25 other viburnums too.

Sorry - my Dawn has whitish pink flowers at the moment as usual this early in the season...they will of course be PINK later on....and the flowers are miserably small - but there are plenty of them. They will get going later once the frosts deal with the leaves.!! It is usually covered in lovely pink tufts of flowers throughout the winter - snows included and the scent sure is a knock out
I have just come in - having lopped the top growth of my ones ....quite a task - they are OLD bushes...almost trees!!!!

Bit unusual for Viburnum bod. to flower now. Must think its spring time!

Thanks for all the responses - I am fairly certain it is the same as Alzheimer's one. I will only prune in spring once all flowering is over. Looking forward to the fragrance too.

Hi Muddywellie it looks as though it is the same as my Verbina, have a look on my pictures at page 6 very top right next to the cup&saucer. In the picture it is just finishing it's winter flowering and is ready to lose all its blossom as the leaves are growing, they have whitish/pink flowers during winter and in spring the flowers die off as the leaves grow. At the moment mine is the same as yours its around 14/15 foot high and full green. I prune mine in the spring/summer months when the leaves are on, and you can be harsh with the pruning too.

Just checked your photo as mentioned above, Bobg- whatever that plant is, it's not Verbena - there aren't any winter flowering verbenas - they're herbaceous perennials that are summer flowering, by and large. It will be a Viburnum of some kind - lovely flowers on it.

I have several Verbena (purple) Bobq nothing like your pic! as already said.

I am sorry Muddywellie I was told it was a verbina, I will have to go do an ident on mine now but it has the very same leaves thats for sure.

I apologise profusely it is a Viburnum bodnantense dawn and, as stated on the RHS website, it is winter flowering. I am so sorry for the confusion and I have also corrected my picture.
....... Well I am a man after all :o)))))

Cool Bobq - an error admitted makes you even more of a man, in the best possible sense;-)

And so fast to Bobq

Thanks for your input Bobq - I appreciate that you tried to help, and I think healthy debate is stimulating, so look at it as that, and not confusion! I am fully satisfied I have a Viburnam Bodnantense Dawn. Case closed!! M