Dawn Arrowwood / Viburnum Hedge Plants

Viburnum x bodnantense 'Dawn' Hedging Plants

Viburnum x bodnantense Dawn is a deciduous, winter-flowering ornamental shrub that can be used as decorative hedging. It is suitable for any garden with averagely fertile soil.
Dawn is good for hedges up to about 3 metres high.

See our selection of hedge shrub plants or view our full range of hedging.

Viburnum hedge plants are only delivered pot-grown, year-round.
All our hedge plants are measured by their height in centimetres above the ground (the pots aren't measured).

Spacing a Viburnum bodnantense Dawn hedge:

Plant Viburnum bodnantense Dawn hedging at 3 plants per metre, 33cm apart.

General description:

This medium-sized shrub is one of the best winter-flowering bushes around, flowering intermittently on naked wood from October through to April. It has pink, tubular blooms, which are carried in numerous small clusters and give off a sweet fragrance that cuts through gloomy days. Dawn is upright in habit and it will respond to clipping very well, developing a dense thicket of twigs. It is a fine hedge plant, although we suggest having a look at the evergreen Viburnum tinus Eve Price for this purpose.
Once established, it makes an excellent host for a small clematis to provide flowers in spring and summer. Like other viburnums, Dawn has excellent autumn foliage colour, which is a marvellous bronze on this variety.

We really recommend planting Dawn in front of evergreens to proved a backdrop for its pale flowers, or beside a seated area or path where its scent can be enjoyed.

History & uses of Viburnum Dawn:

The original Viburnum x bodnantense was a hybrid of Viburnum farreri and Viburnum grandiflorum, first raised at Edinburgh's Royal Botanic Garden in 1933. Dawn was the first new variety raised from this cross. It has won the RHS Award of Garden Merit and the Award of Merit for its cut flowers.

Growing Viburnum bodnantense Dawn plants:
Viburnum bodnantense Dawn will grow well in any averagely fertile conditions. It likes moist clay and is fine on chalk. It is a very hardy plant that also tolerates partial shade.
They will not grow well if the site is in full shade or if the soil is either very poor and dry or waterlogged.

Prepare your site before planting:
It is good to dig over the area where you plant a hedge several months in advance, especially if the soil is poor. Destroy the weeds first: nettles, brambles and ground elder are tough and weed-killer is the best way to remove them. Then dig the soil over; remove rocks, roots and other rubbish. Mix in well rotted compost or manure down to the depth of about 2 spades. If your soil is rich, you don't have to dig it over, but killing all the weeds is still necessary.

Watch our video on how to plant a garden hedge for full details.
Remember to water establishing plants during dry weather for at least a year after planting.

Hedge Planting Accessories:
Prepare your site for planting by killing the weeds and grass
You can buy a hedge planting pack with sheets of mulch fabric and pegs to hold it down.
If you are planting in an area with rabbit and/or deer, you will need to use a plastic spiral guard for each plant, supported by a bamboo cane.
If your soil quality is poor, we recommend using mycorrhizal "friendly fungi" on the roots of new trees and shrubs.
You can also improve your soil with bonemeal organic fertiliser.

After you have planted your Viburnum bodnantense Dawn hedge, the most important thing to do is water it in dry weather. You will also need to weed around the plants. Watering should be thorough, so the ground is soaked. Let the soil almost dry out before watering again. Watering & weeding will be necessary for at least a year after planting.

Trimming Formal hedge plants: Viburnum bodnantense Dawn doesn't need any clipping at all in its first year. In the winter of the following year, your young hedge should be trimmed lightly and every winter after that until it is mature.
When it is fully grown, you can clip it at anytime. A good time to clip Viburnum bodnantense Dawn hedges is after flowering in spring.

Special notes on caring for Viburnum bodnantense Dawn hedges:
Viburnum bodnantense Dawn is a tough hedge plant that shouldn't need special attention once it has established. If you didn't use a mulch fabric, it is beneficial to mulch around the base of the hedge each year with well rotted manure or compost.

Hygiene & Diseases:
Dead, damaged or diseased wood can be pruned off as soon as it appears.
Disinfect your pruning tools between every cut if there is any sign of disease.
Burn or dispose of any diseased material, do not compost it.