Cornelian Cherry Dogwood

BY: Elizabeth Noll

If you don’t want passersby to stop and stare at your yard, don’t even think of planting Cornelian cherry dogwood (Cornus mas). This small tree opens the growing season with a bang in March, when its clusters of tiny yellow flowers explode. The show often continues for weeks and can still be going when other spring-blooming favorites, like forsythia and crabapple, join in. The tree offers another blast of color in summer, when bright red edible fruits form, and the flaking gray-brown bark is pretty in winter. But you’ll probably only have to sign autographs in the spring.

Common name: Cornelian cherry, Cornelian cherry dogwood
Botanical name: Cornus mas
Plant type: Deciduous shrub or small tree
Zones: 4 to 8
Height: 15 to 25 feet
Family: Cornaceae

Growing conditions
• Sun: Full sun to part shade
• Soil: Average, well-drained
• Moisture: Medium to moist

Care
• Mulch: Mulch to preserve moisture in the soil.
• Pruning: Cornelian cherry dogwood will sucker, so if you don’t want a thicket, remove root suckers. Simply mow them down if the tree is surrounded by lawn. Prune lowest branches off to form a tree shape.
• Fertilizer: None needed.

Propagation
• By seed, cutting, or division.

Pests and diseases
• Generally free of problems.

Garden notes
• Cornus mas looks good as a specimen plant, as a hedge or screen, and in shrub borders and foundation plantings. For the lowest maintenance, allow it to naturalize in a woodland area.
• Plant Cornelian cherry dogwood in front of a dark green or reddish background to show off its bright yellow spring blossoms.
• Plant two for maximum fruit production. You’ll get some fruit with only one tree, but more with two.
• Reports on the tastiness of the fruit vary. Some call it unpleasant. Others compare it to a tart cherry. You can pickle it or make it into wine, syrup, or jam.
• Birds like the fruit.

Cultivars
• C. mas ‘Golden Glory’ has a more upright habit than the species.
• C. mas ‘Variegata’ has variegated leaves with green centers and white margins.
• C. mas ‘Yellow’ bears tasty yellow fruits.

All in the family
• Many dogwoods are garden favorites. Flowering dogwoods (C. kousa and C. florida) are beloved for their showy spring flowers; pagoda dogwood (C. alternifolia) for its striking horizontal branching pattern; and redtwig dogwood (C. alba), red osier dogwood (C. stolonifera, also C. sericea), and bloodtwig dogwood (C. sanguinea) for their brightly colored stems.
• The dogwood family, Cornaceae, has more than 100 species. In the United States and Canada, we’re familiar with this family through dogwoods and tupelos.

Where to buy
• Arbor Day Foundation, Nebraska City, NE, 888-448-7337, www.arborday.org
• Forestfarm, Williams, OR, 541-846-7269, www.forestfarm.com
• Miller Nurseries, Canandaigua, NY, 800-836-9630, www.millernurseries.com

(Text by Elizabeth Noll, photo of Cornus mas courtesy of Missouri Botanical Garden’s Kemper Center for Home Gardening.)

All About Gardening

Cornelian Cherry Dogwood

Plant of the Week

Comments

Post Comment

Features

	All About Gardening
Current Articles \| Archives \| Search Cornelian Cherry Dogwood Plant of the Week BY: Elizabeth Noll 0 If you don’t want passersby to stop and stare at your yard, don’t even think of planting Cornelian cherry dogwood (Cornus mas). This small tree opens the growing season with a bang in March, when its clusters of tiny yellow flowers explode. The show often continues for weeks and can still be going when other spring-blooming favorites, like forsythia and crabapple, join in. The tree offers another blast of color in summer, when bright red edible fruits form, and the flaking gray-brown bark is pretty in winter. But you’ll probably only have to sign autographs in the spring. Common name: Cornelian cherry, Cornelian cherry dogwood Botanical name: Cornus mas Plant type: Deciduous shrub or small tree Zones: 4 to 8 Height: 15 to 25 feet Family: Cornaceae Growing conditions • Sun: Full sun to part shade • Soil: Average, well-drained • Moisture: Medium to moist Care • Mulch: Mulch to preserve moisture in the soil. • Pruning: Cornelian cherry dogwood will sucker, so if you don’t want a thicket, remove root suckers. Simply mow them down if the tree is surrounded by lawn. Prune lowest branches off to form a tree shape. • Fertilizer: None needed. Propagation • By seed, cutting, or division. Pests and diseases • Generally free of problems. Garden notes • Cornus mas looks good as a specimen plant, as a hedge or screen, and in shrub borders and foundation plantings. For the lowest maintenance, allow it to naturalize in a woodland area. • Plant Cornelian cherry dogwood in front of a dark green or reddish background to show off its bright yellow spring blossoms. • Plant two for maximum fruit production. You’ll get some fruit with only one tree, but more with two. • Reports on the tastiness of the fruit vary. Some call it unpleasant. Others compare it to a tart cherry. You can pickle it or make it into wine, syrup, or jam. • Birds like the fruit. Cultivars • C. mas ‘Golden Glory’ has a more upright habit than the species. • C. mas ‘Variegata’ has variegated leaves with green centers and white margins. • C. mas ‘Yellow’ bears tasty yellow fruits. All in the family • Many dogwoods are garden favorites. Flowering dogwoods (C. kousa and C. florida) are beloved for their showy spring flowers; pagoda dogwood (C. alternifolia) for its striking horizontal branching pattern; and redtwig dogwood (C. alba), red osier dogwood (C. stolonifera, also C. sericea), and bloodtwig dogwood (C. sanguinea) for their brightly colored stems. • The dogwood family, Cornaceae, has more than 100 species. In the United States and Canada, we’re familiar with this family through dogwoods and tupelos. Where to buy • Arbor Day Foundation, Nebraska City, NE, 888-448-7337, www.arborday.org • Forestfarm, Williams, OR, 541-846-7269, www.forestfarm.com • Miller Nurseries, Canandaigua, NY, 800-836-9630, www.millernurseries.com (Text by Elizabeth Noll, photo of Cornus mas courtesy of Missouri Botanical Garden’s Kemper Center for Home Gardening.) Comments There are currently no comments, be the first to post one. Post Comment Only registered users may post comments.