Cornus florida 'Cloud 9' - flowering dogwood

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Butterfly FriendlyPart ShadeFall Color

DESCRIPTION

flowering dogwood
Cornus florida 'Cloud 9'

Flowering dogwood has spreading horizontal branches and distinctive white flowers in spring. The 3" diameter flower clusters bloom mid-April to mid-May, attracting a number of butterflies and other pollinators. 'Cloud 9' flowers profusely and has extra showy, overlapping white bracts. Clusters of glossy red fruit mature in fall and persist into winter when they are eaten by birds. The leaves turn scarlet red in fall.

Benefits

  • Very early to bloom
  • Nectar and pollen attracts butterflies and other pollinators
  • Berries provide excellent food for birds such as robins, catbirds, mourning doves
  • Provides nesting sites for a number of birds
  • Good fall color
  • Attractive winter form
NATIVE INFO

Native Range

Woods from southeastern Maine to southern Ontario and Michigan south to Illinois, Oklahoma, Northeastern Mexico and Florida.

Native range derived from The Biota of North America 

INTERESTING FACTS

 

The true flowers of flowering dogwoods are actually tiny, yellow green structures compacted into round clusters. Each flower cluster is surrounded by four showy, white, petal-like bracts which open flat, giving the appearance of a single, large, 3-4" diameter, white flower.

 

GROWING TIPS

 

Grow in full sun to part shade. Plant in well-drained soil with adequate soil moisture. Does not tolerate dry soil. Prefers organically rich, acidic soil in part shade. A 4" layer of organic mulch helps keep roots cool and moist in summer.

 

Mature Size: 18-22ft. Tall x 18-22ft. Wide

Hardiness Zone: 5-9

Sun Exposure: Part Shade

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    • Ask for help if you need it. Most garden centers either have a landscape designer on staff or they can give you a reference of a designer that is adept at native plant wildlife gardening. There will be upfront costs but they are small when compared to having to redo a landscape that wasn't what you really wanted

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    A Special Note About Exposure

    Full sun: Prefers six or more hours of direct sunshine a day
    Partial shade: Thrives in three to six hours of daily sunshine
    Shade: Generally does well with less than three hours of sun per day. Having said that even shade loving plants will struggle in extremely deep shade.

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