A perennial and deciduous shrub in the Genus of Viburnum from the Family Adoxaceae. It can be large shrub (more than 8 feet), upright compact tree (10-15 feet), or small tree (15-25 feet) with a form arching shape and multi-stemmed, thicket-forming appearance.
Nannyberry is known for its dark, lustrous green leaves which turn maroon-red in the fall. Then there are the ivory flowers that appear in late spring, flat-topped inflorescences as wide as your palm with its groups of numerous tiny blossoms. These flowers develop into a colorful mixture of different colored fruits, some light green, others pale yellow or red-pink, and all in the same cluster. They darken into blue-black and mature from autumn through early winter. The bark is dark gray to black in a pattern of small blocks.
Nannyberry is also called Sheepberry, Sweet Viburnum while Viburnum lentago is the botanical name and it is native to the Southeast, Northeast, and the Rocky Mountains and is typically found in woodlands and wood edges, a great plant for naturalizing. The root type is a rhizome. The plant has a tendency to sucker abundantly as it gets older. It can form a large thicket or colony. If you do not want this to happen, make removing suckers part of your care regimen.