Herb: Wayfaring Tree


Latin name: Viburnum lantana


Family: Caprifoliaceae (Honeysuckle Family)



Edible parts of Wayfaring Tree:

Fruit - raw or cooked. A famine food, it is only used when all else fails. The oblong fruit is about 8mm long and contains a single large seed.

Description of the plant:



Plant:
Deciduous
Shrub

Height:
5 m
(16 feet)

Flowering:
May to
June

Habitat of the herb:

Open woodland and woodland edges, especially on calcareous soils.

Other uses of Wayfaring Tree:

The young stems can be used as a twine. This species is used as a rootstock for all forms of viburnums that require grafting.

Propagation of the herb:

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, July/August 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 July/August. Takes 15 months.

Cultivation of Wayfaring Tree:

Open woodland and woodland edges, especially on calcareous soils.

Medicinal use of the herb:

None known

Known hazards of Viburnum lantana:

Large quantities of the fruit can cause vomiting and diarrhoea. The fruit is of very low or zero toxicity, it only causes mild upsets when eaten unripe or in large quantities.

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future.