Cornelian Cherry Dogwood

(Cornaceae - Dogwood Family)

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• Form
  • large ornamental shrub or small ornamental tree
  • maturing at about 15' tall by 20' wide
  • upright rounded to upright spreading growth habit, either multi-trunked or single-trunked and branching low to the ground
  • medium growth rate

• Culture
  • full sun to partial shade
  • prefers moist, well-drained soils in full sun, but is adaptable to poor soils, dry soils, soils of various pH, heat, and drought
  • propagated by rooted stem cuttings or by seeds
  • Dogwood Family, with virtually no disease or pest problems
  • abundantly available, usually in ball and burlap form
  • single-trunked forms that branch low or multistemmed forms are the normal forms available, but shrubs that have been limbed up (either single- or multi-trunked) into tree form are also occasionally available
  • best floral contrast is achieved if planted in front of a red brick wall or with an evergreen tree, shrub, or vine backdrop, to enhance the flowering effect of the small yellow inflorescences that emerge before the foliage
  • Cornelian Cherry Dogwood is somewhat sensitive to being transplanted in Autumn, and care should be taken to amend the soil, fertilize, water thoroughly, mulch adequately, and avoid Winter salt spray, to enhance survival chances during the first Winter

• Foliage
  • medium to dark green, somewhat shiny, about 3" long, opposite, broad elliptic, and acuminate, with major leaf veins parallel to the undulating and curving leaf margins
  • fall color is a mixture of green and reddish-purple foliage, and ornamentally ineffective

• Flowers
  • small yellow inflorescences are numerous and clustered on the bare stems in March, effective for about three weeks in late Winter and heralding the impending arrival of Spring
  • earliness to blossom before foliage emergence makes this shrub noticeable when in flower, made much more effective when planted in front of a solid-colored background (such as evergreen English Ivy on a foundation wall, or against a backdrop of evergreen Norway Spruce), as the individual flowers are relatively small and less noticeable when in front of a drab-colored background

• Fruits
  • immature green fruits turn to bright cherry red in July
  • 0.5" long oblong fruits are arranged sparsely along the stems and are quite attractive when viewed up-close, but are usually hidden by the Summer foliage and therefore are rarely noticed by humans, but are quickly eaten by birds and squirrels

• Twigs
  • the first season's green stem growth changes color by late Summer, becoming red-brown to purplish on top of the stem and remaining light green on the bottom of the stem; this bicoloration of the youngest stems continues into the following early Spring and also occurs on several other lesser-known Dogwoods, but not as obviously as on Cornelian Cherry Dogwood
  • 0.25" globular floral buds mature in late Summer and are prominent, being pendulous and either axillary from the nodes on first-year wood, or on short spur shoots from older wood
  • vegetative buds are relatively small and very pointed

• Trunk
  • light brown, exfoliating to lighter tan-yellow shades underneath, subtlely ornamental and seldom noticed because of the low, wide branching

• ID Summary
  • opposite, broad elliptic, shiny dark green leaves have wavy entire margins and veins parallel to the margins, on stems that exhibit a bicolor by late Summer and throughout Winter, having purplish (sun-tanned) uppersides and greenish undersides, with plump floral buds occuring in the leaf axils or on short spur shoots
  • yellow inflorescences emerge in late Winter long before the foliage, covering the canopy of the broad-spreading, often multi-trunked shrub or small tree, which develops a subtlely ornamental exfoliating bark with age

• Function
  • large foundation, entranceway, non-thorny barrier, deciduous windbreak, embankment, wildlife attraction, border, naturalizing, or specimen large shrub or small tree, also serving as a late Winter or early Spring flowering accent

• Texture
  • medium texture in foliage and when bare
  • thick density in foliage and when bare

• Assets
  • very urban tolerant
  • late Winter to early Spring yellow inflorescences
  • larger yet more dependable alternative to Forsythia, as its floral buds are not always Winter hardy in Northern climates

• Liabilities
  • invasive (from a spreading branch perspective) upon other plants and structures with age
  • cannot maintain turf underneath mature specimens due to its dense shade (unless it is considerably limbed up and thinned with age)

• Habitat
  • zones 4 to 8
  • native to Central and Southern Europe and Western Asia

• Alternates
  • large shrubs or small trees with early flowering (Hamamelis x intermedia, Amelanchier x grandiflora, Cercis canadensis, Cornus florida, etc.)
  • medium- to large-sized shrubs for naturalizing (Calycanthus floridus, Cornus racemosa, Hydrangea quercifolia, Ilex verticillata, Lindera benzoin, Viburnum prunifolium, etc.)

• Variants
  • Cornus mas 'Golden Glory'- a much more upright and formal growth habit, maturing at 25' tall by 15' wide, with more dense flowering, becoming more popular in the nursery trade, available in single trunk or multistemmed forms

• Translation
  • Cornus is the Latin name for Dogwood.
  • mas translates as male, referring to the robust vigor of this species.

• Purpose
  • Cornelian Cherry Dogwood is one of the first shrubs to flower in late Winter and early Spring (a larger and earlier yellow-flowering alternative to Forsythia), that is underutilized in modern landscapes.

• Summary
  • Cornus mas is a broad-rounded large shrub or small tree noted for its yellow flowering in late Winter and early Spring, but also having vigorous growth, clean foliage, and being well-adapted to both naturalized as well as urban environments.