Giant Dogwood
 

Mature Size, Growth, Longevity

Average mature size of 30-40' tall and wide under cultivation, can get up to 60' tall in the wild. Quite picturesque, with wide-spreading, horizontal branches. A fast grower, being one of the fastest-growing dogwoods.

Native Range

Native to Japan, China, and the Himalayas. Introduced 1880.

Flower and Fruit Details

Flowers are mildly fragrant, creamy white, borne in flat-topped, 3-7" diameter cymes, made up of numerous 1/2"-wide individual flowers, May-June. Fruits are drupes, changing color from reddish to purple or blue-black in August-September, 0.25" diameter. Fruits are borne on colorful red stalks (pedicels). The fruits contain oils that have been used in commercial lubricants and in soaps.

Leaf and Bark Features

Deciduous: One of the few alternate-leaved dogwoods. Leaves are dark, lustrous green above, silver/green beneath. 3-6" long, 2-3" wide, with a 1-2" long petiole, which give the foliage a pendulous look. Leaves have 6-9 pairs of veins, and have acuminate tips. Leaves may occasionally turn red/purple in fall, but usually not significant.

Culture and Care

Part shade to full sun. Prefers acidic, organic, well-drained soils, but tolerant to clay, loam or sand. Neither heat nor drought tolerant, so mulch and keep moist. Zones 5-7. Several diseases can limit longevity. Leaf spot, root rot and canker diseases may be problematic, depending on weather and siting. Scale, leaf miners and borers are occasional insect pests. Resistant to twig blight.

Strengths, Weaknesses, Other Facts

Good wildlife value. 4-season interest: Spring, Summer, Fall & Winter. Spring frost/freeze damage to early-leafing stems is fairly common. Songbirds love the fruits.

Suggested Uses

This makes a good specimen tree or lawn tree, but is not tough enough to be used as a street tree. If allowed to branch to the ground, also acts as a summer screen.

Taxa and Plants of this Species at BCA