Chinese Snowball Bush
Viburnum macrocephalum
OrderDipsacales
FamilyViburnaceae
HabitatGardens and landscapes; native to China
SeasonBlooms in spring
LocationFair Play, South Carolina, Oconee County, South Carolina
SizeShrub, 6-15 feet
Dietsterile blooms - a pure ornamental feast for the eyes, no berries for birds
ConservationCultivated ornamental
CameraNikon Z9Lens400mmAperturef/4.5Shutter1/250ISO800
Chinese Snowball Bush caught loaded with snowball blooms at Fair Play.
About the Chinese Snowball Bush
The Chinese Snowball Bush is a show-stopping ornamental viburnum that covers itself each spring with softball-sized globes of white flowers, like a hydrangea that went to finishing school. The blooms open lime green and mature to pure white, so a single shrub carries both colors at once at peak season.
Unlike many viburnums its flowers are sterile, producing no berries for birds, so it is purely a feast for the eyes, and in the South it thrives into a small flowering tree.
This one was photographed in full bloom at Fair Play, South Carolina, at the tail end of March.
Want to see a Chinese Snowball Bush in the wild?
Join one of my guided birding tours! Fine art prints of my photos are also available.
Join one of my guided birding tours! Fine art prints of my photos are also available.
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