Cornus sericea White Gold - Stoloniferous Dogwood

The Cornus sericea (or stolonifera) 'White Gold' is a variety of stoloniferous dogwood with moderate growth, interesting throughout the year. Its beautiful fuzzy foliage, variegated with green-gray and white-cream, is attractive from spring to summer, and turns golden yellow in autumn, and its young yellow-green acidic stems, devoid of leaves, are particularly bright in winter. It blooms white in summer, quite discreetly, then produces pretty small white decorative berries that resemble pearls. This compact, dense variety, with a rather upright habit, has its place in minimalist settings, wild gardens, or moist and woodland areas.

Cornus sericea belongs to the dogwood family, just like its Asian cousin Cornus alba, with which it shares many characteristics. Native to eastern North America, from Alaska and Newfoundland to Virginia, this stoloniferous dogwood, also known as silky dogwood due to the presence of down on the undersides of its leaves, is extremely hardy but cannot tolerate heat or dry soils. In nature, this species, which spreads rapidly through stolons, colonizes wet banks and marshy areas.

The 'White Gold' cultivar is distinguished by its variegated foliage, its yellow wood in winter, and its moderate growth. The bush has an upright habit that slightly spreads with age, and will reach an average height of 1.50 m (5 ft) with a spread of 1 m (3 ft 4") if not constrained in its lateral growth. It bears opposite, oval, lanceolate 5 to 10 cm (2-4 in) long, strongly veined leaves of a slightly greyish green colour with white-cream edges. Almost yellow when budding, the foliage turns bright yellow in autumn. The young green branches gradually turn yellow-green to bright yellow. The flat white flowers of 3 to 5 cm (1.2-2 in) in diameter, are not very noticeable and give way to quite decorative white or bluish berries, which quickly disappear due to the appetite of birds.

Cornus sericea 'White Gold' can be planted as a standalone bush in a small garden, or in the background of flowerbeds, in large bushes in association with other stoloniferous dogwoods such as 'Flaviramea', 'Kelsey Gold', 'Silver and Gold', bloodtwig dogwoods or Florida dogwoods for a mix of colours. Its yellow branches brighten the dark green or bluish evergreen foliage of conifers and accompany the spring flowering of azaleas, pieris, and rhododendrons in acidic soil. Use it as a border for a free hedge mixed with bamboos, choisya, nandina or camellia, for example. It is widely used to fill large slopes and to create beautiful hedges in gardens. If the soil in your garden is periodically waterlogged or poorly drained, this bush will give you complete satisfaction, just like viburnums, bald cypresses, or Chionanthus.