Cornus kousa Cultivars M-R

'Madame Butterfly'

Vigorous and floriferous, the acuminate cream bracts flex midway along their length to curve upwards at the tip, the effect resembling butterfly wings; selected by David Leach, Ohio (Cappiello & Shadow 2005; Hatch 2018–2020). The name recalls the Japanese heroine of John Luther Long’s 1898 short story ‘Madame Butterfly’, set in Nagasaki, made famous by Giacomo Puccini’s opera Madama Butterfly (1904). The broad-bracted plant with recurved involucres that circulates under this name appears to be a different clone.

Cornus kousa 'Madame Butterfly' at Sir Harold Hillier Gardens, with narrow delicate bracts held upwards like butterfly wings (June 2021). Image Jack Aldridge.

Elegantly supplicant bracts of Cornus kousa 'Madame Butterfly' (Acc. 87133, Wespelaar Arboretum, Haacht, Belgium; 12 June 2009). Image Philippe de Spoelberch.

'Madi-II'

A distinctive selection producing yellow to pale orange fruits resembling small mandarin oranges. Plants are typical in all other respects, with yellow autumn colour. Selected by Tim Brotzman from a batch of open-pollinated seedlings in Madison, Ohio in 2004, and introduced in the USA in 2014 (US 20140250554 P1; Hatch 2018–2020). As if to render the name doubly appropriate, Moreau et al. (2024) recovered it as cultivar of subsp. chinensis. Other instances of the yellow-fruited form are known in cultivation – see ‘Xanthocarpa’.

'Madison'

In warmer climates, the second flush of growth in July-August of this clone shows unusual heat-triggered colouring of red and gold (not seen in cooler regions, or when drought prevents the second flush). Autumnal colour is the typical red and orange. Discovered in 1994 by Tim Brotzman, Madison, Ohio (US PP16129 P2; Cappiello & Shadow 2005). Moreau et al. (2024) recovered this as cultivar of subsp. chinensis.

'Marble'

Leaves variegated in cream; selected by Robert Lipka, Cedars, Pennsylvania (Cappiello & Shadow 2005).

'Marwood Dawn'

Bracts deep-pink, leaves red-tinted, autumnal colour purple-red; to 3 m tall. Selected at Marwood Hill, Devon (PanGlobal Plants 2026).

Distinguished foliage and inflorescences of Cornus kousa 'Marwood Hill' at its birthplace, Marwood Hill, Devon (1 July 2015). Image John Anderson.

'Melanie'

An upright, moderately vigorous variegated seletion, the leaves green with irregular white margins and pink apices, colouring red in autumn; selected by Adrianus Domen, Wernhout, Netherlands from open-pollinated C. kousa in 2003 (US PP22508 P2). Bracts white to greenish white. Moreau et al. (2024) recovered this cultivar as straight C. kousa subsp. kousa, without admixture of subsp. chinensis.

'Melissa's Mountain Snowfall'

A cultivar with distinctive fused bracts, forming a vase-shaped multistem tree to 6 × 7 m, resistant to anthracnose and powdery mildew – the dried bracts persist on the fruit pedicel. A half-sibling of ‘Pam’s Mountain Bouquet’, which shows similar cohesion in the involucre. (Boggess & Trigiano 2024). Selected from open-pollinated seed as part of the dogwood breeding programme at the University of Tennessee; patented in 2019 (US PP32706 P3). Recovered by Moreau et al. (2024) as a cultivar of subsp. chinensis, one of the parents being ‘Blue Shadow’ (from material donated to the University by its breeder, Polly Hill).

Milky Way Group

Flowers with large, white bracts. The name ‘Milky Way’ was originally applied to a group of fifteen or so similar-looking seedlings chosen from a batch of several thousand grown at Wayside Gardens, Ohio. Grafted material from these individual selections was marketed under the same cultivar name, but the material is more appropriately treated as a cultivar group, comprising the original clones and their seed progeny, widely grown on both sides of the Atlantic. The original selection criteria were a vigorous habit and precocious flowering. (Dirr 2009). The plants were brought to market in 1967, described by the grower as having ‘exquisite, waxy white, star-shaped flowers’ often measuring 15 cm across (House Beautiful 1967).

Wayside Gardens declared bankruptcy in 1975 and Barry Yinger, then working for a Washington DC garden centre and nursery, bought at auction twelve old specimens of C. kousa growing in a block, which Wayside staff told him were the original Milky Way stock plants. He paid 50 cents for each tree. Yinger and his staff hand-dug, balled and burlapped the trees and transported them back to Washington on a low-loader, before they were sold for up to $2000 apiece, one of them to the rubber baron Harvey Firestone as a centrepiece in front of his Virginia mansion (B. Yinger, pers. comm. 2026). The trees were reported to be ‘at least 40 years old’, but were probably younger in view of the date of introduction of the Milky Way Group.

Classically tapered bracts on a specimen from Cornus kousa Milky Way Group (Acc. 91377, Wespelaar Arboretum, Haacht, Belgium; 27 May 2022). Image Philippe de Spoelberch.

A clone from Cornus kousa Milky Way Group offered by Kwekerij van Ooi, Reeuwijk, Netherlands as 'Milky Way'. Image Van Ooi, Reeuwijk.

A tree from Cornus kousa Milky Way Group in full flower at Wespelaar Arboretum, Haacht, Belgium (Acc. 84712; 27 May 2022). Image Philippe de Spoelberch.

The twelve original Milky Way stock plants en route to new pastures in 1975, having been manually dug up at Wayside Nursery by Barry Yinger (foreground, furthest right) and his crew. Image Barry Yinger.

Sub-leathery leaves of a plant from Cornus kousa Milky Way Group at (Arboretum Cimetière Parc, Nantes, France; 11 October 2013). Image James Garnett.

'Minuma'

Pluribracteate (semi-double), with up to six bracts; selected by Toshihiro Hagiwara, Japan (Cappiello & Shadow 2005).

'Miss Petty'

Cupped, very dark green leaves with white overlapping bracts, ageing to pink (Cappiello & Shadow 2005).

Cornus kousa 'Miss Petty' at the Bulk Nursery, Netherlands (13 June 2005). Image Koen Camelbeke, Arboretum Wespelaar.

'Moonbeam'

A vigorous selection with deep green foliage topped by large white bracts to 20 cm in diameter, hardy to –29°C; introduced by Polly Wakefield, Massachusetts (Hatch 2018–2020).

Deep green foliage and white bracts of Cornus kousa 'Moonbeam'. Image Torsten Junker, Junker's Nursery - Gardens and Nursery.

'Moonlight'

Similar to ‘Moonbeam’, but with stiffer bracts; introduced by Mary (Polly) Wakefield (Cappiello & Shadow 2005).

'National'

A very vigorous selection with ivory-white bracts and large fruits (to 4cm across), forming a large vase-shaped tree (Cappiello & Shadow 2005). Introduced by Hoskins Shadow (father of the celebrated Cornus expert Don Shadow) prior to 1996 (Hatch 2018–2020).

Inflorescences of Cornus kousa 'National'. Image Van Ooi, Reeuwijk.

Cornus kousa 'National' (Newby Hall, North Yorkshire, UK, 4 June 2026). Image John Grimshaw.

'Nell Monk'

Floriferous, with wide, overlapping bracts; a 1968 seedling selection from Nymans, Sussex, UK (Cappiello & Shadow 2005).

'Nicole'

A compact selection with large white bracts borne in profusion, suitable for small gardens – not common, but one of Dutch nurseryman Jelle Eppinga’s favourite dogwood cultivars (Houtman 2020). Gayraud (2013) reports it as having been selected by Giordano Gilardelli, Agrate Brianza, Milan, Italy.

The compact habit of Cornus kousa 'Nicole' at the Arboretum Cimetière Parc, Nantes, France (21 May 2014). Image James Garnett.

Inflorescences of Cornus kousa 'Nicole' (Arboretum Cimetière Parc, Nantes, France; 20 June 2013). Image James Garnett.

Foliage of Cornus kousa 'Nicole' (Arboretum Cimetière Parc, Nantes, France; 20 June 2013). Image James Garnett.

Foliage beginning to turn in Cornus kousa 'Nicole' (Arboretum Cimetière Parc, Nantes, France; 23 October 2014). Image James Garnett.

Autumnal leaves of Cornus kousa 'Nicole' (Arboretum Cimetière Parc, Nantes, France; 23 October 2014). Image James Garnett.

'Ohkan'

A green-and-yellow variegated selection with white bracts and good autumn colour, of reduced vigour (Junker Nursery 2023). Moreau et al. (2024) recovered it as cultivar of subsp. chinensis.

'Pam's Mountain Bouquet'

Spreading in form, one of two cultivars with fused bracts (around four in every five), bred by the University of Tennessee (US 20130298297 P1; Wadl et al. 2014) – ‘Melissa’s Mountain Snowfall’ (fused bracts) is a half-sibling. Recovered by Moreau et al. (2024) as a cultivar of subsp. chinensis, one of the parents being ‘Blue Shadow’ (from material donated to the University by its breeder, Polly Hill).

'Parasol'

Ivory-white bracts with rounded tips, borne in profusion, leaves colouring deep red in autumn. Named for the branching habit, with clusters of side branches ‘resembling spokes of an umbrella’; discovered in 1969 as a chance seedling from a cultivated plant by William Devine, in Silver Spring, Montgomery County, Maryland (US PP08703 P). Another seedling from this batch gave ‘Doubloon’.

'Pendula'

Shrubby (to 3 m × 2.5 m), densely branched with drooping shoots; said by Cappiello and Shadow (2005) to flower better than the comparable pendulous C. florida.

'Pevé Foggy'

Narrow, elegantly variegated, crinkled leaves with fine white margins and mid-green centres; creamy white lance-shaped bracts (Esveld 2026; Ashwood Nurseries 2026). A Dutch selection by Piet Vergeldt, Lottum (Piet Vergeldt Boomkwekerij 2026). The bizarrely named ‘Piff Frocky’ offered by Pépinière Le Try (2025) appears to be same plant – a corruption of the original name is just about conceivable, at a squint.

Crinkled variegated foliage of Cornus kousa 'Pevé Foggy' Image Van Ooi, Reeuwijk.

'Pevé Guus'

Upright in habit, with narrow leaves; selected by Piet Vergelt Boomkwekerij, Lottum, Netherlands, but never propagated in commercial quantities, hence rare (J. Vergeldt, pers. comm. 2026).

Autumnal foliage of 'Pevé Guus'. Image Job Vergeldt.

'Pevé Limbo'

Vigorous, with large leaves, variegated white margins on mid-green centres (Junker Nursery 2023). A Dutch selection by Piet Vergeldt, Lottum (Piet Vergeldt Boomkwekerij 2026).

'Pévé Limbo' makes a vigorous tree. Image Job Vergeldt.

Inflorescences and foliage of 'Pévé Limbo'. Image Job Vergeldt.

'Pink Lips'

A white-bracted novelty clone with mottled and twisted green-and-white leaves that acquire an additional pink flush as the season progresses; euphemistically described as ‘a true connoisseur’s selection’ (Ashwood Nurseries 2026).

'Pollywood'

Bracts large, acuminate, late-opening and long-lasting; forms a (comparatively) large tree. Selected by the great Mary (Polly) Hill (Cappiello & Shadow 2005).

Cornus kousa 'Pollywood' heavily burdened by pink-bracted inflorescences. Image Torsten Junker, Junker's Nursery - Gardens and Nursery.

Young involucres of Cornus kousa 'Pollywood'. Image Torsten Junker, Junker's Nursery - Gardens and Nursery.

Cornus kousa 'Pollywood' starts white but fades to pink as the involucres fade. The process is just starting here. Image Torsten Junker, Junker's Nursery - Gardens and Nursery.

Cornus kousa 'Pollywood' just as the involucres begin to dry up. Image Torsten Junker, Junker's Nursery - Gardens and Nursery.

Cornus kousa 'Pollywood'. Image Torsten Junker, Junker's Nursery - Gardens and Nursery.

Autumnal foliage of Cornus kousa 'Pollywood'. Image Torsten Junker, Junker's Nursery - Gardens and Nursery.

'Prolific'

Early, white flowers; selected and introduced in 1968 by Grootendorst and Sons, Boskoop, Netherlands (Cappiello & Shadow 2005).

'Propzam'

Large, slightly overlapping bracts, involucres less wide than ‘Galzam’; particularly fine foliage, thick-textured and rich green, and fruits among the best tasting for C. kousa. Selected and introduced by Lake County Nursery, Ohio; part of their Biblical Series (Cappiello & Shadow 2005).

'PVG'

Upright, with large white bracts and enormous fruits – a favourite of Karan Junker (2023), though the identity of the cultivar is unclear (the initials, pronounced in Dutch, suggest an association with the ‘Pévé’ selections of Piet Vergeldt Boomkwekerij, Lottum, though there is no obvious doppelganger in their assortment).

The mysterious Cornus kousa 'PVG', here with an anomalous six-bracted involucre. Van Ooi, Reeuwijk offer this under the variety or subspecies chinensis. Image Van Ooi, Reeuwijk.

Cornus kousa 'PVG' before the flowers open, at Junker's Nursery, Somerset, UK. Image Torsten Junker, Junker's Nursery - Gardens and Nursery.

'Rasen'

A selection with creamy-white bracts that overlap and become markedly reflexed with age (Cappiello & Shadow 2005). Bract colour in European plants grown under this name may be closer to white than cream (as in a tree at Wespelaar Arboretum, acquired from Bultinck’s Nursery, Belgium), and tend to acquire a pink tint or pink spotting with maturity (Caerhays Diary 20/6/2015).

Autumn colour on Cornus kousa 'Rasen' at Wespelaar Arboretum, Haacht, Belgium (Acc. 00494; 19 November 2006) Image Philippe de Spoelberch.

Cornus kousa 'Rasen'. Image Torsten Junker, Junker's Nursery - Gardens and Nursery.

Flowering branches of Cornus kousa 'Rasen' sagging under the burden (Acc. 00494, sourced from Bultinck, Wespelaar Arboretum, Haacht, Belgium; 6 June 2018). Image Philippe de Spoelberch.

Gently reflexed bracts of Cornus kousa 'Rasen' at Wespelaar Arboretum, Haacht, Belgium (Acc. 00494; 6 June 2018). Image Philippe de Spoelberch.

The white bracts of Cornus kousa 'Rasen' grade to pink as they mature (Acc. 00494, Wespelaar Arboretum, Haacht, Belgium; 12 June 2020). Image Koen Camelbeke, Arboretum Wespelaar.

Incandescent tones on the autumn foliage of Cornus kousa 'Rasen' at Wespelaar Arboretum, Haacht, Belgium (Acc. 00494; 14 November 2014). Image Koen Camelbeke, Arboretum Wespelaar.

'Repeat'

Remontant, with a lesser display in late summer; introduced by Richard Bush, Canby, Oregon (Cappiello & Shadow 2005).

'Repeat Bloomer'

Long flowering, large white bracts; selected by J. G. Marano of Doylestown, Pennsylvania (Cappiello & Shadow 2005).

'Roberts Selectie'

Elegantly tapering bracts, the effect somewhat spoiled by frequent misformed or twisted supernumerary bracts.

Elegantly tapering bracts and distinguished foliage of Cornus kousa 'Robert's Selection' (Wespelaar Arboretum, Haacht, Belgium; 30 May 2006). Image Philippe de Spoelberch.

Cornus kousa 'Roberts Selectie' at Wespelaar Arboretum (Acc. 06013 2 June 2010) Image Koen Camelbeke, Arboretum Wespelaar.

'Rochester'

Vigorous, with exceptionally large bracts; selected by Hoogendorn Nursery, Newport, Rhode Island (Cappiello & Shadow 2005).

'Rosemoor Pink'

A particularly choice selection: shrubby, with pink bracts and purple-flushed leaves in summer; originated in Lady Anne’s Garden, RHS Rosemoor, where it was grown as ‘Rosea’ (see Rosea Group); named by Karan Junker (Junker Nursery 2009; Junker Nursery 2023).

Cornus kousa 'Rosemoor Pink'. Image Torsten Junker, Junker's Nursery - Gardens and Nursery.

Cornus kousa 'Rosemoor Pink'. Image Torsten Junker, Junker's Nursery - Gardens and Nursery.

'Rutglow'

A deeply pigmented, later-blooming selection developed by the Rutgers breeding programme. The bracts are darker than ‘Rutpink’ Scarlet Fire^®, and exceptionally long-lasting, up to six weeks (Rutgers University 2025).

'Rutpink'

A superb pink C. kousa cultivar introduced in 2016 by Tom Molnar at Rutgers University, USA. Bracts ovate with an acuminate apex, all-pink, holding their colour well for up to 8 weeks even in warm weather areas (Hatch 2018–2020). The trees start flowering when very young (even just two years after grafting) and in great abundance. Fruit dark pink, to 2.5 cm in diameter (Rutgers 2021).

The unmistakeable, homogeneously pink bracts of Cornus kousa 'Rutpink' Scarlet Fire. Image Paul Cappiello.

Cornus kousa 'Rutpink' Scarlet Fire exhibited by Burncoose Nurseries at RHS Chelsea Flower Show, 18 May 2026. Image John Grimshaw.

Cornus kousa 'Rutpink' Scarlet Fire begins to flower at an early age – this small tree is seven years old. Image Paul Cappiello.