May - UT Gardens - The University of Tennessee

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Botanical Name: Cornus kousaCommon Name: Kousa DogwoodWe all enjoyed the show that the FloweringDogwood (Cornus florida) gave us in late Marchand early April. This month its cousin from Asiatakes its turn flowering. While Cornus kousa is thescientific name, it is commonly referred to as theKousa Dogwood.Native to Japan, China and Korea, C. kousa wasintroduced into cultivation in 1875. The leavesof C. kousa are smaller than those of our nativeC. florida, and the branches have a more horizontalpattern to them. This species makes a greatspecimen tree or an addition to a shrub border toadd some height and again display the horizontalbranching. One of the most notable characteristicsof C. kousa is its bark. Tan, gray and brownall can be found in the bark of the trunk and thestems. Bark is exfoliating with age and producesgreat color patterns. This adds to its winter appealmaking this a four-season show plant in the garden.The flowers of C. kousa are slightly smaller thanthose of C. florida and appear weeks after thosemore familiar trees have bloomed. C. kousa flowersmid-May in our area, sometimes lasting into June.The fact that they flower during this period is nice,because the leaves have broken dormancy and theflowers show up very nicely elevated above the darkgreen leaves.The tree can rise 20-30’ but is slow growing, andmulti-stemmed shrubs can also be formed. Thelargest of the species is C. kousa var. chinensis,which can reach the 30-foot mark and usuallydisplays slightly larger flowers. Many cultivars arewidely available locally, and one notable cultivarof this variety is ‘Milky Way.’ Michael Dirr describesthis cultivar in his Manual of Woody OrnamentalPlants as “appearing more floriferous than thespecies.” The UT Gardens has another beautifulcultivar, ‘Wolf Eyes,’ which is a variegated selection.Variegated dogwoods can burn in the sun, but thisCornus kousa ‘Wolf Eyes’cultivar seems to do just fine in partial shade. Thereare also pink as well as white blooming cultivars.‘Wolf Eyes’ and the species specimen can both befound in the lower section of the woody gardenrooms. Another C. kousa is in the middle gardenroom on the path leading to the bridge to theChildren’s Touchstone Table and is near the Cornusmas or Cornelian Cherry past the Cornus florida.This provides a great opportunity to compare thesethree different species of dogwood.My favorite way to see this tree in the landscapeis in combination plantings of all three Cornusspecies mentioned. C. mas is the first to bloomin early March and is covered in clusters of yellowflowers. This is followed by our celebrated C. floridaand finally C. kousa, both of which bloom whiteor pink, making for a colorful show all spring. Besure not to miss the Cornus kousa while it’s in fullbloom; you might realize it’s just what your gardenis missing.—Robin Yeery10
Enchanting Plants of SpringThere is always so much to do for the Gardens andFriends that every once in a while we try to makesure we remind ourselves to make note of whatenchants us in our own private gardens or in theUniversity Gardens, despite our harried schedulesin support of a myriad of official advocacy, promotionaland fundraising activities. During the burstof spring that appeared in the last week of March,these plants caused some board members andcommittee chairmen to stop and really take notice:Faye Beck—One of the plants that I reallynoticed this week was my Chinese May Apple orPodophyllum pleianthmum. It has about fourstalks this year and bud blooms that will open adeep red (for the first time). Also, another greatplant was Trillium pusilum ‘Roadrunner’—about2-3 inches tall with lots of white blooms. Anotheris Cercis ‘Little Woody’ in full bloom (from DonShadow).Mary Spengler—It is a no-brainer when I amasked what my favorite plant is during this specialseason—whatever my eyes are feasting on at thatvery moment. It could be the ephemeral springbeauty emerging from the winter forest floor or themagnificent Cercis canadensis (Eastern redbud)blooming in royal purple along its stems. A particularfavorite is the subtle beauty of the HalesiaCarolina (Carolina silverbell). The slender bellshapedflowers dance through the deciduous forestand look to be ringing in the new season.Lucy Gibson—I am especially delighted with my‘Pink Pearl’ azaleas. The color is exquisite—sodelicate, white in the center, with a cotton-candypink on the edges. The overall effect comesacross as almost fluorescent.Theresa Pepin—A favorite of mine that is juststarting to bloom is the Rhododendron macrosepalum‘Koromo Shikibu’. A fragrant, lavenderbloom with very unusual “strap-like” or “spider”sepals, this azalea also has a lovely dwarf formand graceful habit. I bought it years ago as arooted cutting from Roslyn Nursery (before theyceased mail order) because of a recommendationof Pamela Harper in her wonderful book Time-Tested Plants. Just enchanting.P. J. Snodgrass—Sanguinaria canadensis orBlood Root is my favorite. The small white flowersare bright and cheery, and I think the leavesare such an interesting shape. Because it is oneof the early risers in spring, I always think it isbrave.Mary Collins-Shepard—Epimedium grandiflorum‘Rose Queen’ is flowering now under oneof my (pre-Dogwood Arts Festival) full-bloomdogwoods, and it’s a gem.Dr. Sue Hamilton—I particularly like our newdogwood addition in the UT Gardens Cornuscontroversa ‘Variegata’ or Wedding Cake tree.It has layers of horizontally-held branches withstriking green and white variegated foliage soluminescent that you would think it is in bloom.(It actually will not bloom until late spring/earlysummer.) It is valued for its form and foliagetexture. If you haven’t yet noticed this destinationtree in the Gardens, it is planted in the newestbeds along Neyland Drive.Carolyn Crowder—Tiny ‘Hawera’ daffodils, a1938 heirloom from New Zealand that had moreblooms on each bulb than a bouquet.Christine Griffin—Although it blooms for barelya week, I love that I have out by my front doorat this time of year a ‘Koreanspice’ viburnum(Viburnum carlesii). Just as its name implies, thefragrance is spicy. It would make a fine aftershaveor perfume.Do you have a favorite plant you want to sharewith our membership in the newsletter? Let usknow.11
Page 1 and 2: Volume 14 No 4 May 200716 th ANNUAL
Page 3 and 4: Viola Alpine Summer2007 Winter annu
Page 5 and 6: Curator of the Perennial Border, Te
Page 9: May Gardening TipsBecause May is on
Page 13 and 14: She earned her bachelor’s degree
Page 15 and 16: Many thanks to Cindy Williams for h
Page 17 and 18: Secret Gardens sponsor. Be sure to
Page 19 and 20: New & Renewing Members & Donors-Apr

May - UT Gardens - The University of Tennessee

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