Common Name: Hobbleberry

General Information

Viburnum lantanoides is a deciduous shrub growing up to 4 metres tall. The central shoots are erect, the lower ones spreading, often prostrate[, ].
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food and a medicine

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

, ,

Range

Eastern N. America - Ontario to Quebec and Nova Scotia, south to Tennessee and Virginia

Habitat

Moist woods and shady ravines[, ].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Habit	Deciduous Shrub
Height	3.00 m
Pollinators	Insects
Self-fertile	No
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

Viburnum lantanoides is a very hardy plant, tolerating temperatures down to about -30°c[].
An easily grown plant, it succeeds in most soils but is ill-adapted for poor soils and for dry situations[]. It prefers a deep rich loamy soil in a shady position[]. Requires a moist acid soil and woodland conditions but dislikes root competition from other plants, especially large trees[, , ]. Another report says that it requires an exposed position[]. Dislikes alkaline soils[]. Best if given shade from the early morning sun in spring[].
Plants are self-incompatible and need to grow close to a genetically distinct plant in the same species in order to produce fruit and fertile seed[, ].
Plants are often self-layering in the wild and form thickets[].
This species is closely related to Viburnum furcatum[].

Edible Uses

Fruit - raw or cooked[, , ]. Sweet and palatable, tasting somewhat like raisins or dates[, , ]. The fruits have a large seed and a thin flesh[]. The taste is best after a frost[, ]. The ovoid fruit is about 15mm long and contains a single large seed[].

Medicinal

The leaves are analgesic[]. They have been mashed and applied to the head as a poultice to ease a migraine[].

A decoction of the roots has been used as a blood medicine[]. The decoction has been used as a fertility aid by women[].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed - best sown in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe. Germination can be slow, sometimes taking more than 18 months. If the seed is harvested 'green' (when it has fully developed but before it has fully ripened) and sown immediately in a cold frame, it should germinate in the spring[]. Stored seed will require 2 months warm then 3 months cold stratification and can still take 18 months to germinate[]. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in a cold frame or greenhouse. Plant out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer of the following year.
Cuttings of soft-wood, early summer in a frame[]. Pot up into individual pots once they start to root and plant them out in late spring or early summer of the following year.
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, 5 - 8 cm long with a heel if possible, mid summer in a frame[, ]. Plant them into individual pots as soon as they start to root. These cuttings can be difficult to overwinter, it is best to keep them in a greenhouse or cold frame until the following spring before planting them out[].
Cuttings of mature wood, winter in a frame. They should root in early spring - pot them up when large enough to handle and plant them out in the summer if sufficient new growth is made, otherwise keep them in a cold frame for the next winter and then plant them out in the spring.
Layering of current seasons growth in mid summer. Takes 15 months[].