Dogwood, Silky, Bare Root

Silky Dogwood (Cornus amomum)

A colony-forming shrub for moist woodland margins and stream buffers. Its blue fruit and dense branching give it a practical role in habitat restoration.

Key Characteristics

Blue fruit, several feeding opportunities

Ruffed grouse, quail, wild turkeys, and songbirds eat the fruit. Retaining a group of shrubs creates cover close to the food source.

Host foliage and specialist pollen

Spring and summer azure butterflies use silky dogwood. Dogwood flowers also support specialist Andrena bees, linking the leaves and flowers to different insect needs.

Let a buffer become connected

Allow selected stems to spread where a wider streamside shrub layer is wanted. Manage suckers at paths or property edges rather than repeatedly shearing the whole planting.

Product Details

• Native range: Eastern and central North America
• Life cycle: Deciduous woody perennial
• Sun: Full Sun; Part Sun/Shade; Full Shade
• Soil moisture: Medium; Medium-Wet; Wet
• Mature height: 6–12 feet
• Bloom: May–June
• Bloom color: White, Cream
• USDA hardiness zones: 5–8
• Fruit or seed: Blue fruit ripening in late summer into early fall; wildlife food.
• Pollination: Group genetically distinct seedlings with overlapping bloom for improved fruiting.

Planting and Ongoing Care

Keep bare roots moist until planting, water the root zone during establishment, and mulch without covering the crown. Base fertilizer on a soil test; our Tree Planting Kit fertilizer blend can be used according to its label when feeding is needed.

Maintain airflow, remove diseased stems, and protect establishing shrubs from deer browsing. Avoid insecticides on open flowers. Seed-grown plants vary in growth, flowering, and fruiting.