Cornus 'Rutgan' STELLAR PINK

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Common Name: dogwood 

Type: Tree

Family: Cornaceae

Zone: 5 to 9

Height: 15.00 to 30.00 feet

Spread: 15.00 to 30.00 feet

Bloom Time: April to May

Bloom Description: Pink

Sun: Full sun to part shade

Water: Medium

Maintenance: Low

Suggested Use: Flowering Tree

Flower: Showy

Leaf: Good Fall

Attracts: Butterflies

Tolerate: Deer

Garden locations

Culture

Best grown in average, medium moisture, well-drained soils in full sun to part shade. Prefers moist, organically rich, acidic soils in part shade. Benefits from a 2-4” mulch which will help keep roots cool and moist in summer.

Noteworthy Characteristics

Cornus is a genus of about 45 species of mainly deciduous shrubs and small trees.

Genus name comes from the Latin word cornus meaning "horn", possibly in reference to the strength and density of the wood. Cornus is also the Latin name for cornelian cherry (Cornus mas). May also be related to the Greek kerasos meaning "cherry".

STELLAR PINK is a hybrid dogwood (Cornus florida x Cornus kousa) that was developed by Elwin R. Orton, Jr. as part of the Stellar series of dogwoods released by Rutgers University. It is noted for its vigorous habit, large-bracted flowers, profuse bloom and resistance to anthracnose and dogwood borer. It is a small deciduous tree with a dense, upright habit. It has a uniform width from top to bottom, typically maturing to 15-20’ tall and as wide. Flowers bloom in spring. The true dogwood flowers are actually tiny, yellowish green and insignificant, being compacted into button-like clusters. However, each flower cluster is surrounded by four showy, petal-like, pink bracts which open flat, giving the appearance of a single, large, 3-5” diameter, 4-petaled, pink flower. Floral bracts on this cultivar are rounded and overlapping. Oval to elliptic, dark green leaves (4-6” long) turn attractive shades of purple-red in fall. STELLAR PINK is sterile and does not produce fruit. This hybrid cultivar is sometimes sold in commerce under the name of Cornus x rutgeriensis. U.S. Plant Patent PP7,207 was issued on March 27, 1990.

Cornus 'Rutgan' STELLAR PINK - Plant Finder (missouribotanicalgarden.org)

Cornus 'Rutgan' STELLAR PINK - Plant Finder (missouribotanicalgarden.org)