Viburnum opulus L.
Guelder rose, water elder, European cranberrybush, cramp bark, snowball tree
Kingdom Plantae Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom Tracheobionta Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division Magnoliophyta Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class Magnoliopsida Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass Asteridae A large class that encompasses asters
Order Dipsacales Includes viburnum, honeysuckle, snowberry, beautybush, twinflower, many others
Family Adoxaceae Elders and viburnums
Genus Viburnum Latin for “a kind of shrub”
Species opulus From Latin opulus, a type of maple
About plant names...
Guelder rose is native to Europe and Asia.
Identification: This shrub reaches 13-16′ (4-5 m), with
three-lobed, coarse-veined, somewhat maple-like leaves 1¾-4″ (5-10 cm) in size. Leaves
have course serrations, and occur in opposing pairs. Flowerheads (technically corymbs ) are
1½-4″ (4-11 cm) around. Each corymb has an outer ring of sterile, white- or cream-colored flowers
½-¾″ (1.5-2 cm) around, with five petals. Within this ring is a large number of very small, fertile
flowers, also white, about ⅛″ (5 mm) around. The fruits are brilliant red when ripe,
⅛-¼″ (3.2-6.3 mm) in diameter, round or somewhat oval.
See this comparison table showing Viburnums that are presently in
our database, or this nicely done Viburnum species guide .
From .
Online References:
Blue Planet Biomes
The USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Region, Species Conservation Project (Viburnum opulus L. var. americanum) (PDF)
Plantdatabase.uconn.edu
Plants for a Future, a resource and information centre for edible and otherwise useful plants
The Virginia Tech Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation
CalPhotos
EFloras
9/24/2010 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (17 × 11 cm)
8/4/2009 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 16 × 11″ (41 × 27 cm)
5/14/2008 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, Massachusetts
Viburnum opulus description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 25 May 2020.
© FloraFinder.org. All rights reserved.
5/27/2010 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, Massachusetts
7/17/2010 · Mackworth Island, Falmouth, Maine · ≈ 17 × 12″ (44 × 29 cm) ID is uncertain
10/23/2009 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (17 × 11 cm)
9/13/2009 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 8 × 5″ (19 × 13 cm)
9/24/2010 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 4½ × 3″ (11 × 7.9 cm)
9/13/2009 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 9 × 6″ (22 × 14 cm)
9/13/2009 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 9 × 6″ (23 × 15 cm)
10/1/2011 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 8 × 5″ (19 × 13 cm)
Range: Zones 3-8:
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