Viburnum nudum Pink Beauty

Viburnum nudum 'Pink Beauty' is a charming variety of naked viburnum, attractive almost all year round. This shrub captivates with its adorable little pink and then violet berries that persist on the branches for a long time in winter, its often semi-evergreen foliage with splendid autumn colours, but also with its somewhat Japanese-inspired habit, supported by tiered branches. With a moderate growth, both rustic, refined and colourful, 'Pink Beauty' is also an easy plant to grow in any good garden soil that is not too dry.

The pedunculate cymes viburnum, often called naked viburnum, is a shrub native to China. It now belongs to the Adoxaceae family, formerly part of the Caprifoliaceae family. The cultivar 'Pink Beauty', obtained in the USA, stands out for its compact habit, but above all for its remarkable pink and violet fruiting. This shrub will not exceed 2m (6ft 5in) in height and 1.5m (4ft 11in) in width. Its habit is generally upright, but the shrub develops in tiers, through spreading secondary branches. It blooms in June-July, in the form of large flat corymbs, 10 to 15cm (3.9 - 5.9in) in diameter; they are composed of small white flowers, sometimes pink. This slightly fragrant flowering is very melliferous and nectariferous. The fruiting is abundant and very decorative, in the form of clusters where numerous round berries of a very bright pink are packed with ripe berries that have turned violet. Its foliage, deciduous to semi-evergreen depending on the severity of the winter, is composed of large elliptical leaves of a beautiful shiny dark green. They turn red, purple-violet, and brown in autumn.

Completely hardy, 'Pink Beauty' naked viburnum is an undemanding plant. It thrives in sunny or semi-shady positions, and flourishes in any ordinary soil that is rather moist, even slightly calcareous. It can be used as a focal point to attract attention in small gardens, in pots on a terrace, in hedges or in borders in larger gardens. In a hedge, it can be associated with a variety of shrubs chosen for their autumn foliage (Euonymus europaeus, Euonymus alatus, Cotinus, Oakleaf Hydrangea, Physocarpus), their spring flowering (mock orange, Deutzia, lilac, Canadian serviceberry), or for their attractive fruiting (chokeberries, beautyberries, snowberries, Chinese quince...). Its graceful inflorescences can be included in your spring bouquets and its fruit clusters will decorate festive tables in winter.