Gray Dogwood, Cornus racemosa

Native Shrub or Small Tree

Full Sun-Part Shade

Wet to Dry

10-15' high & wide

This lesser known dogwood deserves more recognition than it receives. It is easy to care for & provides year round interest. Other names include stiff dogwood, grey dogwood & panicled dogwood.

Gray dogwood tolerates a variety of light & soil conditions. It is native to most of Missouri, except for some western counties. This dogwood in commonly found in moist, rocky soil along water. You can also find it in woodlands, prairie thickets & on ridges. It will tolerate short periods of standing water & some drought. Gray dogwood prefers moist soil & would love growing in your rain garden. You can grow this plant in full sun or part shade since it can be found in prairies or as forest understory trees.

This plant flowers for about a week and a half May through June. Creamy flower clusters have rounded tops. Fruits are also showy & follow in July-October. They are creamy white as well with colorful red stalks. The subspecies Cronus racemosa subspecies foemina has blue berries & is more common in the Bootheel region of Missouri. The blue can range from very light to dark. Stems can range in color from a rusty brown to red-gray. Fall color can depend on the weather, but leaves become a beautiful, dusky purple or red on a good year. Once the leaves fall, young red stems persist into winter. Twigs aren't as showy as the red twig dogwood (Cornus sericea), but Gray dogwood's are still attractive & have better heat tolerance.

Gray dogwood can be pruned as a short tree, but in the wild likes to form a multi-stem shrub. It happily spreads through root suckers & can form thickets. This makes the plant perfect for naturalized areas, large sites, rain gardens & privacy borders. It will fill in quickly & can be used similarly to viburnum shrubs. It also tolerates city air pollution & some black walnut allelopathy. Gray dogwood provide shelter & food for many songbirds. It is not a good choice for formal or minimalist landscapes designs. Nor should it be planted near water lines. Gray dogwood can be an attractive native addition if planted in the right spot.

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