Viburnum lantana ‘Aureum’

Planted: 1922

This shrub is at the east end of the Grass Path.

Distribution:	A cultivar of Viburnum lantana with yellow leaves in spring. Common names are the wayfarer or wayfaring tree. Native to central, southern and western Europe (north to Yorkshire, in England), north-west Africa, and south-western Asia. It is common in hedgerows and along roadsides.
Planting Date:	Purchased from J Cheal and Sons, Lowfield Nurseries, Crawley in 1922.
Growth Habit:	A deciduous shrub or small tree growing to 4 to 5 m tall.
Leaf:	The leaves are opposite, simple oval to lanceolate, 6 to 13 cm long and 4 to 9 cm broad, with a finely serrated margin; they are densely downy on the underside, less so on the upper surface.
Flower:	Flowers are small, around 5 mm, and creamy-white, produced in dense cymes 4 to 10 cm width at the top of the stems; they are produced in early summer, and pollinated by insects
Fruit:	Fruit is an oblong drupe 8 mm long, green at first, turning red, then finally black at full maturity, and contains a single seed. The seeds are dispersed by birds.
Toxicty:	The fruit is of low to zero toxicity, but may cause vomiting or diarrhoea if consumed unripe or in large quantities.
Anecdotes and Comments:	An older name for the plant is hoarwithy. “Hoar” means grey-haired and refers to the hairs under the leaves, and “withy” means a pliant stem.