Other Names:  Wayfaring Bush

Description:

One of the most unique accent shrubs; the coarse fuzzy foliage of this selection is mottled in white, rewards the curious on close inspection, white capped-flowers produce red fruit that quickly fades to black; shrubby habit warrants judicious pruning

Ornamental Features

Variegated Wayfaring Tree is covered in stunning creamy white flat-top flowers at the ends of the branches in mid spring. It has attractive lemon yellow-variegated emerald green foliage. The large fuzzy pointy leaves are highly ornamental but do not develop any appreciable fall colour. The red fruits are held in abundance in spectacular clusters from late summer to late fall.

Landscape Attributes

Variegated Wayfaring Tree is a multi-stemmed deciduous shrub with a more or less rounded form. Its relatively coarse texture can be used to stand it apart from other landscape plants with finer foliage.

This is a relatively low maintenance shrub, and should only be pruned after flowering to avoid removing any of the current season's flowers. It is a good choice for attracting birds to your yard, but is not particularly attractive to deer who tend to leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Variegated Wayfaring Tree is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• General Garden Use

Planting & Growing

Variegated Wayfaring Tree will grow to be about 8 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 8 feet. It has a low canopy with a typical clearance of 1 foot from the ground, and is suitable for planting under power lines. It grows at a slow rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for 40 years or more.

This shrub does best in full sun to partial shade. It prefers to grow in average to moist conditions, and shouldn't be allowed to dry out. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America.