Cornus kousa 'Satomi' - Satomi Kousa Dogwood

A truly beautiful specimen tree for the home landscape, with large, showy deep pink flowers in spring and a strongly horizontal habit of growth; very particular as to siting, requires rich, well-drained acidic soil and adequate precipitation

Height: 25 feet. Spread: 25 feet. Sun: full sun, partial shade, full shade. Hardiness zone: 4b.

Ornamental features

Satomi Chinese Dogwood features showy clusters of pink flowers with pink bracts held atop the branches in late spring. It features an abundance of magnificent pink berries from early to mid fall. It has bluish-green deciduous foliage. The pointy leaves turn an outstanding brick red in the fall. The peeling gray bark adds an interesting dimension to the landscape.

Landscape

Satomi Chinese Dogwood is a multi-stemmed deciduous tree with a stunning habit of growth which features almost oriental horizontally-tiered branches. Its average texture blends into the landscape, but can be balanced by one or two finer or coarser trees or shrubs for an effective composition.

This is a relatively low maintenance tree, and should only be pruned after flowering to avoid removing any of the current season's flowers. It is a good choice for attracting birds to your yard. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Recommended for: Accent, Shade.

Planting and growing

Satomi Chinese Dogwood will grow to be about 25 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 25 feet. It has a low canopy with a typical clearance of 3 feet from the ground, and is suitable for planting under power lines. It grows at a medium rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for 40 years or more.

This tree performs well in both full sun and full shade. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. It is very fussy about its soil conditions and must have rich, acidic soils to ensure success, and is subject to chlorosis (yellowing) of the foliage in alkaline soils. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution, and will benefit from being planted in a relatively sheltered location. Consider applying a thick mulch around the root zone in winter to protect it in exposed locations or colder microclimates. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America.

Photo courtesy of NetPS Plant Finder.