WateringTimesWatering plan, $19
Viburnum tinus, WUCOLS IV

How often to water laurustinus in California

In July in the Central Valley, established laurustinus in loam needs a deep watering about every 8 days: about 8.8 gallons each time for a plant 4 feet across, about 7.6 gallons a week. Laurustinus is a dense evergreen viburnum from the Mediterranean, with glossy dark green leaves. From winter into spring, clusters of pink buds open to fragrant white flowers, followed by metallic blue berries that ripen nearly black. It makes a tough hedge or screen, yet it looks best with regular summer water in well-drained soil.

ShrubRated for 6 of 6 zones

How often to water laurustinus, month by month

Your city
Plant width
4 ft
Your soil

Type your city above and the days between waterings and the gallons appear here, worked out from your city's climate table. Or read the figures by climate zone further down.

Every month, on your water days. The personal plan prints this for laurustinus and the rest of your yard, on the days your water supplier allows.Get the plan for $19

How this is worked out: established roots fill the top 1.5 feet of soil, and you water again when that soil has dried halfway. Loam soil holds about 1.5 inches of water per foot. Water the whole area the plant covers, and skip a watering after a good soaking rain.

Which soil do you have?

Dig down a few inches, take a handful of moist soil and squeeze it.

  • Sandy: gritty, falls apart when you open your hand, will not form a ball.
  • Loam: forms a soft ball that crumbles when you poke it.
  • Clay: forms a firm, sticky ball and squeezes out into a ribbon between thumb and finger.

Still not sure? Pick loam. Most garden beds sit between sand and clay.

How to measure plant width

A shrub with its width marked from one side to the other and the circle under it shaded blue

Measure across the plant, from the tips of the leaves on one side to the tips on the other.

Water the whole area the plant covers, shown in blue. The gallons here cover that area.

A wider plant means more gallons each watering, not more waterings. While it is young, measure again each spring.

How to tell it needs water

  • Soil dry 3 inches down at the edge of a laurustinus hedge in summer signals that the roots need a deep soak
  • Leaves dulling and drooping in an inland heat wave point to a dry root zone, especially against a sunny west wall
  • Yellowing leaves and whole branches dying back in wet, heavy soil warn of root and crown rot
  • Curled, sticky or speckled leaves point to aphids, thrips or spider mites rather than to water
  • White powdery patches on leaves in shady, humid spots point to powdery mildew, not thirst

How to water it

  • Run drip line along both sides of a hedge, or a ring around a single shrub, keeping water off the foliage
  • Wet the root zone of a laurustinus to about 18 inches, and wait until the top few inches are dry before watering again
  • Plant in well-drained soil in sun or part shade, with afternoon shade in hot inland valleys
  • Spread 2 to 3 inches of mulch over the root zone, keeping it back from the stems to protect the crown
  • Widen the drip pattern as the shrub fills toward its 6 to 10 foot spread

Through the seasons

Young laurustinus plants need deep soakings through their first two summers as the roots move out into native soil. Established shrubs still look best with regular summer water, and inland they appreciate afternoon shade. It stays evergreen and blooms from winter into spring, largely during the rainy season. Rain usually covers the cool months on the coast and in the Central Valley; check desert plantings in dry winter spells. WUCOLS rates laurustinus moderate water on the north-central coast, in the Central Valley and on the south coast. South Inland, the high desert and the low desert share that moderate water rating.

In pots

Laurustinus grows well in a large container on a patio, where its winter flowers show up close. In summer, test a potted laurustinus every few days by feeling the mix about 2 inches down. Check it more often in hot afternoon sun. Water until it runs from the drainage holes, then empty the saucer so the roots never sit wet. It flowers through winter, so keep the mix lightly moist in dry winter spells. Trim after bloom to keep a potted plant compact.

1 Your climate zone six WUCOLS zones, each from its own reference city
2.67gal per sq ft in JulyModerate water use in the Central Valley zone
A year
17.11 gal per sq ft
Reference
Sacramento climate table
Counts
Plant need, before sprinkler losses
0.761.52.33.00.4JAN0.65FEB1.09MAR1.52APR2.08MAY2.48JUN2.67JUL2.39AUG1.8SEP1.18OCT0.56NOV0.34DEC0.761.52.33.00.4JFM1.52AMJ2.67JAS1.18OND
Gallons per square foot per month, Central Valley. Peak 2.67 in Jul, 17.11 a year.

Monthly water need by climate zone

Laurustinus: gallons per square foot per month, by WUCOLS climate zone

MonthN. CoastC. ValleyS. CoastS. InlandHi DesertLo Desert
Jan0.370.40.780.780.740.78
Feb0.530.650.810.870.930.93
Mar0.871.091.151.31.461.52
Apr1.181.521.41.611.891.95
May1.462.081.611.952.392.45
Jun1.612.481.742.292.852.79
Jul1.612.671.982.513.042.85
Aug1.492.391.862.332.792.6
Sep1.241.81.491.862.142.08
Oct0.871.181.151.331.461.49
Nov0.470.560.840.90.930.96
Dec0.310.340.650.680.650.68
Year1217.1115.518.4121.2721.08

How this is worked out: the WUCOLS water rating for each zone times that zone’s climate for the month. A dash means WUCOLS does not rate the plant there. The figures are what the plant uses, before sprinkler losses.

Plants with the same water needs 16

Rated moderate water in the Central Valley, like laurustinus. Plants that drink alike can share one valve and one schedule.

RosesRosa hybrids..bushmoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyAzaleasRhododendron spp. (CA native and non-native spp.)moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyCamelliasCamellia japonica (SHADE IN DESERT)moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyGardeniasGardenia spp. & cvs.moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyBird of ParadiseStrelitzia reginae (shade in desert)moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyHibiscusHibiscus rosa-sinensismoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulySago PalmCycas revolutamoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyStar JasmineTrachelospermum jasminoides and cvs.moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyArborvitaeThuja occidentalis ssp. & cvs.moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyBambooBambusa spp.moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyLilacsSyringa hybrids (including Descanso hybrids)moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulySpireaSpiraea spp. (CA native and non native spp.)moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyButterfly BushBuddleja davidii and hybridsmoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulySageSalvia officinalis and cvs.moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyRed BuckeyeAesculus paviamoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyWestern ServiceberryAmelanchier alnifoliamoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in July

Similar plants that need less water 16

Rated lower than laurustinus in the Central Valley. Worth a look for a new bed or a lawn replacement.

LavenderLavandula spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyRosemaryRosmarinus officinalislow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyBougainvilleaBougainvillea & spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyOlive TreesOlea europaea ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyCrape MyrtleLagerstroemia spp., hybrids & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyLantanaLantana camara ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySalviaSalvia greggii ssp., cvs. & hybridslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyAloeAloe spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySucculentsEcheveria spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyJunipersJuniperus spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyRussian SagePerovskia spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySagebrushArtemisia spp. (shrubby)low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyWild PrivetLigustrum vulgarelow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyCoralberrySymphoricarpos orbiculatus (SHADE)low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySydney Golden WattleAcacia longifolialow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyBlue Leaf WattleAcacia salignalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
Minutes for your sprinklers

Turn this into minutes on your water days

Every city page has a calculator that takes laurustinus, your sprinkler type and the month, and gives the minutes per water day for that supplier's schedule. Or put it in a zone of the personal watering plan and get all twelve months printed.

Questions people ask

How often should I water laurustinus in summer?

In July, established laurustinus in loam needs a deep watering about every 8 days in the Central Valley, about every 11 days on the south coast and about every 9 days in the South Inland zone. Sandy soil holds less water, so waterings come closer together. Clay stretches them. Check the soil before each watering and skip one after a soaking rain.

How much water does laurustinus need per day?

In July in the Central Valley, established laurustinus needs about 1.1 gallons a day for a plant 4 feet across and about 4.3 gallons a day for a plant 8 feet across. Give it in deep waterings spread days apart rather than a little every day, so the whole root zone gets wet.

Does watering for laurustinus change across California?

Yes. WUCOLS rates laurustinus separately for each of the six California climate zones: moderate water in the North-Central Coastal zone, moderate water in the Central Valley zone, moderate water in the South Coastal zone, moderate water in the South Inland zone, moderate water in the High and Intermediate Desert zone, moderate water in the Low Desert zone. The monthly table above shows how the same rating translates into different gallon amounts as reference evapotranspiration changes.

When does laurustinus bloom?

It blooms from winter into spring, as pink buds open to fragrant white flowers. Blue berries follow and ripen to nearly black. Keep the soil from drying out during bloom in a dry winter.

Why isn't my laurustinus making berries?

Fruit set improves with another viburnum planted nearby. Pruning right after bloom also removes the flowers that would have become berries. Water has little to do with it.

How do I keep a laurustinus hedge dense?

Prune right after bloom to prevent legginess, and keep summer water regular so new growth fills in. In hot inland valleys, afternoon shade helps the hedge stay full.

Is laurustinus salt tolerant?

Yes, it tolerates salt, which helps near the coast, and it resists deer. Salt tolerance does not replace regular summer water.

Why are my laurustinus leaves yellow?

If the soil stays wet, check for root and crown rot first, since these diseases attack viburnums in poorly drained ground. If drainage is fine, a nutrient deficiency can also yellow the leaves.

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Sources