Doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii'
Viburnum plicatum f. tomentosum 'Mariesii' · Viburnaceae
Branches held in flat, horizontal tiers, each lined in late spring with a double row of white lacecap flowers, like snow on the boughs.
- Size
- 10 ft tall, 11½ ft wide
- Zones
- 5 to 8
- Light
- Full sun to part sun
- Flowers
- Mid May to late May
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Anchor
A bed built around doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii'
The planner designed this bed around doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii' when this page was made: a 30 × 14 ft (9.1 × 4.3 m) English border in zone 6, full sun. It chose the other plants from the 966 that suit those conditions, and says below why doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii' × 1, white
- 2 Bloody cranesbill × 10, pink
- 3 Verbena 'Homestead Purple' × 3, purple
- 4 Blue holly × 1, blue-green leaves
- 5 Brown-eyed Susan × 8, yellow
- 6 Tatarian aster 'Jindai' × 4, purple
- 7 White mugwort × 4, cream
- 8 Lowbush blueberry × 19, white
- 9 Palm sedge × 8, green leaves
- 10 Eastern bee balm × 8, pink
- 11 Robin's plantain 'Lynnhaven Carpet' × 44, lavender
- 12 Horned violet × 42, blue
- 13 Turk's cap lily × 4, orange
- 14 Easter lily × 7, white
- 15 Hardy gladiolus × 7, pink
Why this plant
- The only flat plates. The others are open bowls, dense clusters, daisies and others. Shape reads at a distance, where colours blur.
Why here
- Anchors a back corner. At 10 ft it is the tallest plant here, and the tallest close the ends of the bed, where they stand in front of nothing.
- A step in the back row. Next to brown-eyed Susan (4 ft): no two neighbours there are the same height, so the back steps up and down like a skyline.
- One plant, alone. A shrub is seen as an object, and needs clear ground around it.
Why now
- In flower for three weeks. From mid May to late May.
- Fills no gap. Every week it is in flower, at least five other kinds are too. It thickens a season that is already full.
Planned as an English border: 26 of the 31 groups (84%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. Doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii' and blue holly anchor the back corners of the bed: the tallest plants on the plan stand there. Verbena 'Homestead Purple' flowers longest, for 21 weeks.
The planner's own design check: 13 Excellent, 3 Good, 1 Satisfactory.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii' goes in a border
At 10 ft it belongs at the back of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is super tall (over 6½ ft).
Its job: anchor. A shrub that gives the bed permanent structure. Planted singly, as soon as the front edge is laid; everything else is arranged around it.
The most architectural of flowering shrubs. Its layered outline needs space on every side and should never be pruned to fit. Red-purple autumn colour.
- A tiered specimen
- The corner of a large bed
- Autumn colour
What to plant with doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Hosta 'Royal Standard': carries the spot on into early September; bold leaves against its medium ones; low enough (2 ft) to stand in front of it.
- Siberian iris: low enough (2½ ft) to stand in front of it; happy in the same moist soil.
- Japanese forest grass: its green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; low enough (18 in) to stand in front of it; happy in the same moist soil.
Questions about doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii'
Does doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii' need sun or shade?
Doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii' grows in full sun (6 or more hours of direct sun a day) and part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun).
It wants soil that stays evenly moist, rich in organic matter, and a good soak in dry spells. Once settled in, it stands drought.
What zones does doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii' grow in?
USDA zones 5 to 8. It is hardy to zone 5, which means it survives winter nights down to about −10 °F (−23 °C).
Above zone 8 it struggles: the zones measure winter cold, but a plant's top zone usually means the summers are too hot or the winters too mild for it to rest.
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii' flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers mid May to late May. As a spring flower it moves about a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer, later where it is colder.
| Zone 5 | Mid May to late May |
|---|---|
| Zone 6 | Early May to late May |
| Zone 7 | Early May to mid May |
| Zone 8 | Late April to early May |
Worked out from Hopkins' bioclimatic law: spring arrives about four days later for each degree of latitude north, and one zone is roughly two degrees. A warm spring or a cold one moves any garden two weeks either way.
How far apart should doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii' be planted?
10 ft (300 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 11½ ft (350 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 10 ft (300 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii' plants do I need?
Usually one. At 10 ft (300 cm) across, it is a plant you place, not one you mass. For a hedge or screen, set them 10 ft apart: two plants for a 10 ft run.
In the bed above, the planner used one in one group.
Is doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii' poisonous to dogs and cats?
No toxicity is recorded for dogs, cats, horses or people, according to NC State Extension.
"Not toxic" is not "edible": a pet that eats a lot of any plant can be sick.
Is there a native plant like doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii'?
Doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii' comes from China, Japan, Taiwan. These North American natives come closest to doing its job:
- American cranberrybush: the same job in a bed, the same flowering time and the same colour; 20 in narrower.
- Red osier dogwood: the same job in a bed, the same flowering time and the same colour; 20 in shorter, 3½ ft narrower.
- American elderberry: the same job in a bed and the same colour; 20 in narrower, flowers mid June to mid July.
Matched the way the planner's Swap button matches plants: the same job in a bed, then size, then flowering time.
Do deer eat doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii'?
They may. NC State does not list it as resistant to deer or rabbits. Where they visit, protect it, or plant it among ones they avoid.
What flowers after doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii'?
Doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii' is over by late May. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Siberian iris: from late May to late June, 2½ ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems (a recorded partner).
- Mountain laurel: from late May to late June, 8 ft tall.
- Oakleaf hydrangea: from mid June to early August, 6½ ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
What does doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii' look like in winter?
Doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii' drops its leaves and stands as bare branches. That is when to see its shape, and to prune it if it needs pruning.
Is doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii' good for bees and butterflies?
Doublefile viburnum 'Mariesii' is visited by pollinators and butterflies.
More Viburnum
- American cranberrybush Viburnum trilobum
- Arrowwood viburnum Viburnum dentatum
- Arrowwood viburnum 'Blue Muffin' Viburnum dentatum 'Christom' (Blue Muffin)
- Bodnant viburnum 'Dawn' Viburnum x bodnantense 'Dawn'
- Burkwood viburnum Viburnum x burkwoodii
- David viburnum Viburnum davidii
- Doublefile viburnum Viburnum plicatum f. tomentosum
- Judd viburnum Viburnum x juddii
- Koreanspice viburnum Viburnum carlesii
- Laurustinus Viburnum tinus
- Mapleleaf viburnum Viburnum acerifolium
- Viburnum 'Summer Snowflake' Viburnum plicatum f. tomentosum 'Summer Snowflake'
- Witherod viburnum 'Winterthur' Viburnum nudum 'Winterthur'
In these guides
Zone guides: Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7 · Zone 8
In flower in: May
Every fact on record
- Type
- Shrub
- Size
- 10 ft (300 cm) tall, 11½ ft (350 cm) wide
- Plant
- 10 ft (300 cm) apart
- Height class
- Super tall (over 6½ ft)
- Place in the bed
- Back
- Flowers
- Mid May to late May; flat plates; white
- Leaves
- Medium texture, deciduous; dark green
- Shape
- Rounded, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 5 to 8
- Light
- Full sun, part sun
- Soil
- Rich, evenly moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- None needed
- Family
- Viburnaceae
- Comes from
- China, Japan, Taiwan
- Attracts
- Pollinators, butterflies
- Stands up to
- Drought
Checked against NC State Extension. Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.