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Cornaceae FAMILY

Cornus mas

Cornus mas

Edibility
3/5
Medicinal
2/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitDeciduous Shrub
GrowthMedium

Cornus mas is a very hardy plant, tolerating temperatures down to about -25°c when dormant[1]. An easily grown plant, it succeeds in any well-drained soil of good or moderate fertility[2, 3], ranging from acid to shallow chalk[4]. Grows well in heavy clay soils. Prefers a moist soil rich in organic matter[5, 3] and a sunny position[6] but also succeeds in light shade[7]. Plants are fairly wind resistant[PFAF]. Plants grow and crop well in pots. At one time the cornelian cherry was frequently cultivated for its edible fruit, though it has fallen into virtual disuse as a fruit crop in most areas[8]. It is still being cultivated in parts of central Europe and there are some named varieties[9]:- 'Macrocarpa' has larger fruits (up to 30mm long) than the type[10, 11]. 'Nana' is a dwarf form, derived from a yellow-fruited clone[11]. 'Variegata', with variegated leaves, has been seen on a number of occasions with very large crops of fruit, even in years when the type species has not fruited well[PFAF]. 'Jolico' has well-flavoured fruits 3 times larger than the species. There are also a number of cultivars with yellow, white and purplish fruit. Seedlings can take up to 20 years to come into fruit. Plants produced from cuttings come into fruit when much younger, though they do not live as long as the seedlings. A very ornamental plant[2] it flowers quite early in the year and is a valuable early food for bees[12, 5]. Plants in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus[4].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame or in an outdoors seedbed if there is sufficient seed[13, 14]. The seed must be separated from the fruit flesh since this contains germination inhibitors[13, 15]. Stored seed should be cold stratified for 3 - 4 months and sown as early as possible in the year[15]. Scarification may also help as may a period of warm stratification before the cold stratification[13, 15]. Germination, especially of stored seed, can be very slow, taking 18 months or more[15]. Prick out the seedlings of cold-frame sown seeds into individual pots as soon as they are large enough to handle and grow the plants on for their first winter in a greenhouse, planting out in the spring after the last expected frosts. Cuttings of half-ripe side shoots, mid summer in a frame[7]. Cuttings of mature wood of the current year's growth, taken with a heel if possible, autumn in a cold frame. High percentage[16]. Layering of new growth in early summer/July. Takes 9 months[16]. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Cornus+mas>

Pollinators

Bees

References

  1. [1]Shrubs. — Phillips. R. & Rix. M. · Pan Books · 1989 · ISBN 0-330-30258-2 ↩︎Excellent photographs and a terse description of 1,900 species and cultivars.
  2. [2]RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 — F. Chittendon. · Oxford University Press · 1951 · ISBN - ↩︎Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [ 200 ]).
  3. [3]KemperCentreForHomeGardeningPlantFinder — Missouri Botanical Garden · http://www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/plantfinder/ ↩︎Basic cultivation details, plant uses, habitat etc for several thousand species of plants, mainly from the temperate zone.
  4. [4]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
  5. [5]Garden Plants Valuable to Bees. — International Bee Research Association. · International Bee Research Association. · 1981 · ISBN - ↩︎The title says it all.
  6. [6]Edible Ornamental Garden. — Bryan. J. and Castle. C. · Pitman Publishing · 1976 · ISBN 0-273-00098-5 ↩︎A small book with interesting ideas for edible plants in the ornamental garden.
  7. [7]The RHS Gardener's Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers — Brickell. C. · Dorling Kindersley Publishers Ltd. · 1990 · ISBN 0-86318-386-7 ↩︎Excellent range of photographs, some cultivation details but very little information on plant uses.
  8. [8]Growing Unusual Fruit. — Simmons. A. E. · David & Charles; Newton Abbot. · 1972 · ISBN 0-7153-5531-7 ↩︎A very readable book with information on about 100 species that can be grown in Britain (some in greenhouses) and details on how to grow and use them.
  9. [9]Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. — Facciola. S. · Kampong Publications · 1990 · ISBN 0-9628087-0-9 ↩︎Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.
  10. [10]Flora of the USSR. — Komarov. V. L. · Israel Program for Scientific Translation · 1968 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org · ISBN - ↩︎An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
  11. [11]Ornamental Shrubs, Climbers and Bamboos. — Thomas. G. S. · Murray · 1992 · ISBN 0-7195-5043-2 ↩︎Contains a wide range of plants with a brief description, mainly of their ornamental value but also usually of cultivation details and varieties.
  12. [12]Hamlyn Encyclopaedia of Plants. — Triska. Dr. · Hamlyn · 1975 · ISBN 0-600-33545-3 ↩︎Very interesting reading, giving some details of plant uses and quite a lot of folk-lore.
  13. [13]Hardy Woody Plants from Seed. — McMillan-Browse. P. · Grower Books · 1985 · ISBN 0-901361-21-6 ↩︎Does not deal with many species but it is very comprehensive on those that it does cover. Not for casual reading.
  14. [14]The Reference Manual of Woody Plant Propagation. — Dirr. M. A. and Heuser. M. W. · Athens Ga. Varsity Press · 1987 · ISBN 0942375009 ↩︎A very detailed book on propagating trees. Not for the casual reader.
  15. [15]Growing from Seed. Volume 4. — Bird. R. (Editor) · Thompson and Morgan. · 1990 · ISBN - ↩︎Very readable magazine with lots of information on propagation. A good article on Yuccas, one on Sagebrush (Artemesia spp) and another on Chaerophyllum bulbosum.
  16. [16]Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. — Sheat. W. G. · MacMillan and Co · 1948 · ISBN - ↩︎A bit dated but a good book on propagation techniques with specific details for a wide range of plants.
  17. [17]Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. — Bean. W. · Murray · 1981 · ISBN - ↩︎A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.
  18. [18]Flora of N. America — http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/fna/ ↩︎An on-line version of the flora with an excellent description of the plant including a brief mention of plant uses.
  19. [19]Encyclopaedia of Medicinal Plants. — Chiej. R. · MacDonald · 1984 · ISBN 0-356-10541-5 ↩︎Covers plants growing in Europe. Also gives other interesting information on the plants. Good photographs.
  20. [20]Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. — Hedrick. U. P. · Dover Publications · 1972 · ISBN 0-486-20459-6 ↩︎Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.
  21. [21]Edible and Medicinal Plants. — Launert. E. · Hamlyn · 1981 · ISBN 0-600-37216-2 ↩︎Covers plants in Europe. a drawing of each plant, quite a bit of interesting information.
  22. [22]A Modern Herbal. — Grieve. · Penguin · 1984 · ISBN 0-14-046-440-9 ↩︎Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.
  23. [23]The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants — Chevallier. A. · Dorling Kindersley. London · 1996 · ISBN 9-780751-303148 ↩︎An excellent guide to over 500 of the more well known medicinal herbs from around the world.
  24. [24]A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. — Usher. G. · Constable · 1974 · ISBN 0094579202 ↩︎Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.
  25. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎