Kousa Dogwood
Cornus kousa
An Asian dogwood blooming weeks after native flowering dogwood, with pointed creamy bracts held above the leaves, raspberry-like edible fruit, and beautiful exfoliating bark. Crucially, it resists the dogwood anthracnose and borers that plague Cornus florida, making it a tougher, more disease-resistant small specimen tree.
Field reference
Family
Cornaceae
Growth rate
Slow
Mature size
20–30 ft tall, 20–30 ft spread
Hardiness zone
5–8
Soil preference
Moist, rich, acidic, well-drained soils; better drought tolerance than flowering dogwood
Sun
Full sun to part shade
Pruning window
After flowering (early summer); minimal pruning needed
Wood properties
Hard, dense, fine-grained dogwood wood on a small frame; light rigging. Exfoliating mottled bark on older trunks is a key ornamental and ID feature.
Native range
Native to East Asia (Japan, Korea, China); widely planted ornamental
Green weight
52 lb/ft³
Pests & diseases to watch
Common questions
Is kousa dogwood more disease-resistant than flowering dogwood?
Yes — Cornus kousa is notably resistant to dogwood anthracnose and dogwood borer, the two biggest killers of native flowering dogwood, which is why it is often recommended as a tougher substitute or planted as hybrids with C. florida.
Are kousa dogwood berries edible?
Yes — the bumpy, raspberry-red aggregate fruits are edible, with a sweet, custard-like pulp, though the skin is grainy and they are messy where they drop on pavement.
Related species in Cornaceae
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