Cornus 'Rutgan' Stellar Pink® (Flowering Dogwood)

Cornus x Stellar Pink® (also called Cornus x 'Rutgan') is part of the hybrid dogwood series from Rutgers University's dogwood breeding program, cultivated to be more resistant to common dogwood pests and diseases such as dogwood borer, dogwood anthracnose, and powdery mildew. The Stellar Pink® cultivar is named for the large, cherry-blossom pink bracts that surround its true flowers which lend 'stellar' visual appeal to the spring landscape; these large bracts give the plant its namesake 'flowering' appearance. In addition to its flowers and disease resistance, Cornus x Stellar Pink® is noted for its attractive, wine-red fall foliage, which adds a ton of multi-season interest.

'Rutgan' Stellar Pink dogwood prefers well-drained, medium-moisture soil in full sun to partial shade. Growing to a mature size of 20-25' tall and about 15-20' wide, Stellar Pink® is an excellent early spring bloomer, providing a lot of appeal to early season pollinators and works beautifully as a specimen tree or forest understory planting. As a bonus, Cornus x 'Rutgan' is a sterile hybrid, and produces no fruit to drop and stain sidewalks or patios, making it ideal as a street tree, though this quality decreases its attractiveness to birds. Cornus x Stellar Pink® makes an excellent pick for specimen planting or as the centerpiece of a larger pollinator garden, and will prove especially hardy where common flowering dogwoods may falter.