Perhaps it is Viburnum dentatum 'blue muffin'?

When you say it gets "buds", you actually see flower buds, or are those leaf buds? And if you see flower buds, what happens to them, do they just drop off without opening?

hmm...I think they're flower buds, cuz I have leaves, open leaves. Each little twig has a bud,
and then one day there are no buds!

every one seems to disappear at the same time.

no blue muffin doesn't ring a bell - i've been looking around the net trying to identify the species.

er

I'm not sure. When you say 'too young' is it possible for a Viburnum to take more than 4 years to flower?

thanks so much for your input.

ellen

I don't know the concrete definition of too young for viburnums. In 2004 I got ten Viburnum cassinoides from the New Hampshire nursery and they were small (12 inches?). But the one with the most sun exposure did bloom in 2007. Now it looks like a couple of the others will bloom in 2008 (can't be sure until it happens). But the ones with the least amount of sun are noticeably smaller and probably still won't bloom this year.

I assume that your plant has not leafed out yet? If that is true, pay close attention to the tips as they unfold this year.

It is possible that some pesky creature - squirrel, bird, etc. - is eating the buds just before they open. Your statement that the buds seem to disappear just before opening leads me to think this. I was walking through a local woods yesterday, and found many small, barely opened buds, both flower and leaf, under a tulip poplar tree. I assume a squirrel cut and dropped them - some of the flower buds were partly eaten.

I know that some birds, especially sparrows, can eat flower buds from some trees/shrubs, so it may be that your viburnumm is especially tasty just at opening time. If a flock of whatever found your viburnum, they could clean it off in short order.

And that doesn't help you get flowers, I know. Sorry not to be able to help more.

Deer seem to prefer buds on V. dentatum cultivars(of which 'Blue Muffin' is one) to those on almost every other type of viburnum.

It may be the amount of sun.
Does this plant receive full sun, - any shade?
Also because it is young and it was moved may also impact the flowering.
At some point it would be good to know the type, so that you can have a second one so that you can also have fruit.
Mike

I have the same problem with buds not blooming. My viburnum is finally loaded with buds (having only a few last year), but they didn't open once again. They are definitely not leaf buds as I've been keeping a close eye out for that. Full sun, good soil as far as I know.

This shrub was a "volunteer" that was transplanted about 4 years ago and now stands about 4.5 feet high. Still to young maybe?

Post some images.