2019 Yellowstone Arboretum Accessions
Redosier Dogwood
A#2019-000 H46
GPS W/A
Latin name: Cornus sericea
Family name: Cornaceae
Common name: Red Twig Dogwood
Origin: Native
Location: Multiple locations on grounds
Number in accession: Multiple
Assigned: H46 Homestead specimen
Status: Never accessioned
Source: Unknown
Type: Deciduous shrub
Family: Cornaceae
Native Range: North America
Zone: 3 to 7
Height: 6.00 to 9.00 feet
Spread: 7.00 to 10.00 feet
Bloom Time: May to June
Bloom Description: White
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium to wet
Maintenance: Medium
Suggested Use: Hedge, Rain Garden
Flower: Showy
Leaf: Good Fall
Attracts: Birds, Butterflies
Fruit: Showy
Other: Winter Interest
Tolerate: Deer, Erosion, Clay Soil, Wet Soil
Culture
Best grown in organically rich, fertile, consistently moist soils in full sun to part shade. Tolerant of a wide range of soils, including swampy or boggy conditions. Trim roots with a spade and promptly remove root suckers if colonial spread is undesired. Best stem color occurs on young stems. Although pruning is not required, many gardeners choose to remove 20-25% of the oldest stems in early spring of each year to stimulate growth of new stems which will display the best color. As an alternative to annual pruning, some gardeners prune all stems close to the ground (coppice to 8") in early spring every 2-3 years to renew. Any loss of flowers through spring pruning is not terribly significant since the small flowers of this dogwood are rather ordinary. Plants become stressed and more vulnerable to diseases such as canker in hot and humid summer climates south of USDA Zone 7.
Noteworthy Characteristics
Cornus sericea, commonly known as red twig dogwood or red osier dogwood, is an upright-spreading, suckering shrub that typically grows in the absence of pruning to 6-9’ tall with a slightly larger spread. With the exception of the lower midwest and deep South, this species is native to much of North America where it is typically found growing in wet swampy areas, wetland margins or along lakes and rivers. Ovate to lanceolate, medium to dark green leaves (2-5” long) acquire interesting shades of red to orange eventually fading to purple in autumn. Reddish stems turn bright red in winter and are particularly showy against a snowy backdrop. Tiny, fragrant, white flowers appear in flat-topped clusters (cymes to 2.5” diameter) in late spring, with sparse, intermittent, additional flowering sometimes continuing into summer. Flowers give way to clusters of whitish (sometimes with a bluish tinge) drupes in summer. Fruit is quite attractive to birds and is generally considered to have as much if not more ornamental interest than the flowers.