Doublefile viburnum is a dense multi-stemmed shrub that matures at a height of 5 to 8 feet and features showy white flowers in late spring and sporadically in summer. Plant in full sun to partial shade with moist, well-drained soil. It prefers loams but tolerates a range of soil types. Prune it back immediately after flowering as it flowers on second-year wood and you risk removing the flower buds if you wait. It is drought tolerant once established. Leaves are burgundy to bronze-purplish in autumn. It is noted for orangish-red drupes in late summer which are irregularly produced in the South. Plant as a foundation plant, a specimen, or in small shrub borders, hedges, or mass plantings.. Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems : No serious problems. The Clemson Cooperative Extension Home and Garden Information Center has a factsheet on common pests and diseases. Quick ID Flat-topped, double-file inflorescences on tiered branches Large sterile flowers surrounding small fertile Leaves opposite, caperate Compact, dense shrub of small size More information on Viburnum plicatum var. tomentosum .
Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds
whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.
No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.
Also noted by NC State
Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell
apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day) | Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
Soil texture
Clay; High Organic Matter; Loam (Silt); Sand; Shallow Rocky
Soil pH
Acid (<6.0); Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Moist
Available space
6-feet-12 feet
NC region
Coastal; Mountains; Piedmont
Mature size
Height: 5 ft. 0 in. - 8 ft. 0 in. | Width: 8 ft. 0 in. - 10 ft. 0 in.
Maintenance
Low
Canopy layer
3 - Shrub (3-15 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Dense; Erect; Horizontal; Multi-stemmed
Texture
Medium
Foliage
Deciduous
Leaf color
Green
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf arrangement
Opposite
Leaf shape
Elliptical; Ovate
Leaf margin
Crenate
Leaf value
Showy
Leaf size
3-6 inches long, 1-3 inches wide
Hairs present
Yes
Leaf detail
Leaves opposite, dark green, caperate with impressed veins, drooping, elliptic-ovate to broad ovate, crenate, stellate-pubescent.
Fall color
Red/Burgundy
Flower color
White
Flower value
Showy
Flower form
Umbel
Flower shape
Star
Flower size
< 1 inch
Flower detail
Lacy white flowers appear in mid to late spring and continue to bloom on and off through the summer and sometimes even into fall. The inflorescence is axillary in two rows, flat-topped, lace umbels, with outer sterile flowers surrounding inner fertile flowers.
Bloom time
Fall; Spring; Summer
Fruit color
Black; Blue; Red/Burgundy
Fruit type
Drupe
Fruit value
Showy
Fruit detail
Fruits are rounded ovoid, red drupes becoming bluish-black.
Stem detail
Horizontal branching habit
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Unknown
Attracts
Butterflies; Songbirds
Food & Medicine
Harvest time
Fall; Summer
Fruit type
Drupe
Landscape Use
Landscape location
Lawn
Landscape theme
Butterfly Garden; Cottage Garden
Design feature
Border; Foundation Planting; Hedge; Small groups; Specimen
Garden tags
#upright form #easy to grow #foundation planting #flowers late spring #showy flowers #showy fruits #drought tolerant #specimen #white flowers #summer flowers #fall interest #multistemmed #fantz #bird friendly #butterfly friendly #dense growth #lacy leaves #hedge #wildlife friendly #shrub border #small groups #bat friendly #moth friendly