Red osier dogwood
Cornus sericea
An ornamental plant, planted at any time of year.
In September: nothing to do. It can be planted now.
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Red osier dogwood, month by month
Bar: the usual months. Sprout: this month.
| Sowing, planting or job | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | 2027Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plant a pot-grown red osier dogwood. | usual | usual | usual | usual | usual | usual | usual | usual | usual | usual | usual | usual |
| Plant a bare-root red osier dogwood. | usual | usual | usual | usual | usual | usual | usual | usual | usual | none | none | none |
| Cut the red osier dogwood hard back for new stems. | none | none | none | none | none | usual | usual | usual | none | none | none | none |
| Mulch the red osier dogwood. | none | none | none | none | none | none | usual | usual | usual | none | none | none |
| Prune the red osier dogwood. | none | none | none | none | none | none | usual | none | none | none | none | none |
What to do, and when
The usual months for a UK garden. Your own plan gives the week.
Planting
Plant a pot-grown red osier dogwood at any time of year, 50 to 60cm apart. Strong source: RHS.
Plant a bare-root red osier dogwood September to May, 60cm apart. Moderate sources: Gardeners’ World and Buckingham Nurseries.
Cut the red osier dogwood hard back for new stems
Gardeners call this coppicing and stooling for stem display.
Once established, cut every shoot back to 5-7.5cm from the ground.
Usually February to April. Strong source: RHS.
Mulch the red osier dogwood
Use well-rotted organic matter or composted bark, kept clear of the stems so they don’t rot.
Usually March to May. Strong source: RHS.
Prune the red osier dogwood
Once established, cut all shoots back to 5 to 7.5cm from the ground. From RHS.
Usually March. Moderate source: Gardeners’ World.
What the source words mean
Strong: the RHS page for this plant is among them.Moderate: another trusted UK source, or the RHS on its group.
Add red osier dogwood to my plot
Every line above names the page it comes from. Where we found no good source for a job, we left it out. Where the name “Red osier dogwood” comes from.