Kousa dogwood (Cornus kousa var. chinensis): garden muses plant profile

Chinese dogwood: why you need to plant it

Looking for a medium sized deciduous tree that offers interest throughout the seasons? Look no further than Kousa (aka Chinese) dogwood! Hardy in zones 5-8, Cornus kousa var. chinensis is not native to North America (originally from China, Japan and Korea) but offers the following ornamental characteristics:

a) White/cream coloured bracts that can cover the tree. It's a wonderful sight to see a Kousa dogwood laden with these white bracts in May-June. Here's my tree covered with bracts in spring:

Cornus kousa (Chinese dogwood) bract 

Cornus kousa (Chinese dogwood) blooms 

Cornus kousa var chinensis (Chinese dogwood) bracts 

Chinese dogwood (Cornus kousa var chinensis)  bracts 

Chinese dogwood (Cornus kousa var chinensis) bracts 

Chinese dogwood (Cornus kousa var chinensis) berries 

Flowers often produce these warty and somewhat edible fruits (berries) by autumn. I profiled these soft fruits that have a mealy consistency in a post titled "Maybe you do need a scoop of vanilla ice cream... Fresh Toronto Cornus kousa fruits in the raw!" Likely the squirrels and birds will eat them before you can harvest them.

I tried eating one and, while edible, wasn't an amazing gourmet experience!

Cornus kousa var chinensis 
(Chinese dogwood) autumn foliage 

Cornus kousa's fall foliage is very ornamental as shown above. Colours range from plums, wines, russets, oranges and golds on the same tree.

Common cultivars we see in Toronto include "Satomi" with pink bracts and "Wolf Eyes" which has wavy variegated leaves. They can be planted as small-medium sized trees, shrubs and standards and can fit into most landscape garden styles.

Cornus kousa prefers full sun (6 hours of direct sun) with ample watering in the first several years after transplanting. My tree takes care of itself more or less, no fertilizing required and is pest free. Just leave it alone to achieve its natural vase shape and don't prune them into meatballs!

Maybe you do need a scoop of vanilla ice cream...

Fresh Toronto Cornus kousa fruits in the raw!

As my mama used to say, "life's not a bowl of cherries" or a Chinese variation like "you can't always expect to eat the last haw gow." Life's not always smooth and plentiful but occasionally you do and should enjoy nature's bounty. The warty looking fruit in the bowl are some ripe Chinese dogwood (Cornus kousa) berries I picked surreptiously as the shrubs were, technically, on private property. I find plant junkies like myself often play fast and loose with concepts like trespassing and vandalism. I even had a reply ready if someone stopped and asked me what I was doing: helping myself to the urban harvest!

Mmmm, but what about those warts?

Now, I wasn't going to eat them although they are edible in a quasi custardy-mealy way.  (Ice cream would go a long way.)  I didn't collect them for a reason as transient as consumption but rather to germinate the seeds. After mashing the pulpy fruits in my fingers, extracting the seeds and scrubbing off the pulp, I planted them in small pots so they can stratify over winter in the garage. According to a trusted source, C. kousa seeds are relatively easy to germinate and don't go through double dormancy like the viburnums I try to propagate via seeds. I'll let you know next spring how things progress.