What is the difference between Chinese snowball viburnum and hydrangea? A quick guide to telling them apart

Both the Chinese snowball viburnum and the hydrangea got their names because their flowers look like a ball of flowers, but the two are different plants. Below, the editor introduces the difference between the Chinese snowball viburnum and the hydrangea.

1. Differences between the Chinese snowball viburnum and the hydrangea

Different plants: the Chinese snowball viburnum is a deciduous or semi-evergreen shrub of the genus Viburnum in the family Caprifoliaceae, reaching up to 4 m tall; the hydrangea belongs to the Hydrangeeae tribe, is shorter, around 1 m tall; different flowers: the Chinese snowball viburnum usually blooms in April-May, with large white flowers shaped like a ball of flowers; the hydrangea blooms from June to August, with full, large and beautiful flower heads, and its flowers can be red or blue.

2. Propagation methods of the Chinese snowball viburnum

Sowing: the Chinese snowball viburnum is commonly propagated from seed; collect the seed in November, pile it up to after-ripen, wash the seed clean, stratify it at low temperature until sowing the following spring, cover with soil slightly thickly, and then cover with grass on top. Some seeds germinate and emerge in June of that year; at this point the grass can be removed for shade, and after staying in the bed for 2 years they can be transferred to another bed for separate planting; after 4-5 years they can be transplanted for garden landscaping.

Grafting: graft the Chinese snowball viburnum in early March (before the buds sprout); take a branch from a mother tree that can bloom, cut off a section about 5 cm long as the scion, and one with the terminal bud retained is ideal; the high graft method is generally used. After grafting, place it in a shaded spot; after the scion's buds produce leaves, put it directly in the sunlight; once established, it can bloom in the first year.

3. Propagation techniques of the hydrangea

Division: best done in early spring before the buds sprout. Separate the rooted branches from the mother plant, pot them directly, do not water too much, and keep them in partial shade; after new buds sprout, return to normal care.

Layering: done when the buds sprout; growth occurs after 30 days, and the following spring cut it from the mother plant, transplant it with soil, and it can bloom that year.

Cuttings: done during the plum rain season. Cut tender tip shoots about 20 cm long, remove the lower leaves; the suitable temperature for rooting cuttings is 13-18°C, and roots form 15 days after insertion.

Tissue culture: use dormant buds as explants, disinfect them routinely, then inoculate them on MS medium supplemented with 6-benzylaminopurine 0.8 mg/L and indoleacetic acid 2 mg/L to cultivate adventitious buds. When the shoots reach 2-3 cm tall, transfer them to 1/2 MS medium supplemented with indoleacetic acid 2.0 mg/L and grow them into complete small plantlets.