We have recently published ‘Food Forest Plants for Hotter Conditions’: i.e. tropical and sub-tropical regions. We rely on regular donations to keep our free database going and help fund development of this and another book we are planning on food forest plants for Mediterranean climates. Please give what you can to keep PFAF properly funded. More >>>

Follow Us:

 

Cornus Canadensis - L.

Common Name Creeping Dogwood, Bunchberry dogwood, Bunchberry
Family Cornaceae
USDA hardiness 2-7
Known Hazards None known
Habitats Coniferous woods, thickets and damp clearings in peaty soils[43].
Range N. America - Newfoundland to Alaska, south to Virginia and California.
Edibility Rating    (4 of 5)
Other Uses    (2 of 5)
Weed Potential No
Medicinal Rating    (2 of 5)
Care (info)
Fully Hardy Moist Soil Semi-shade Full sun
Cornus Canadensis Creeping Dogwood, Bunchberry dogwood, Bunchberry


(c) 2010 Ken Fern & Plants For A Future
Cornus Canadensis Creeping Dogwood, Bunchberry dogwood, Bunchberry
(c) 2010 Ken Fern & Plants For A Future

 

Translate this page:

Summary

Bloom Color: White. Main Bloom Time: Early summer, Late spring. Form: Spreading or horizontal.


Physical Characteristics

 icon of manicon of flower
Cornus Canadensis is a PERENNIAL growing to 0.3 m (1ft) by 1 m (3ft 3in) at a fast rate.
See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 2 and is not frost tender. It is in flower in June. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Insects.
Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and can grow in heavy clay soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid and neutral soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil.

UK Hardiness Map US Hardiness Map

Synonyms

Chamaepericlymenum canadense.

Plant Habitats

Woodland Garden Sunny Edge; Dappled Shade; Shady Edge; Ground Cover;

Edible Uses

Edible Parts: Fruit
Edible Uses: Pectin  Pectin

Fruit - raw or cooked[1, 101]. Pleasant but without much flavour[2, 55, 62]. The fruits are rather dry a bit gummy and rather mealy but they have a pleasant slightly sweet flavour, though they are not the type of fruit I would like to eat raw in quantity[K]. They can be added to breakfast cereals or used for making jams, pies, puddings etc[183]. An excellent ingredient for steamed plum puddings[183]. High in pectin[172], so it can be used with pectin-low fruits when making jam[K]. Pectin is said to protect the body against radiation[201]. The fruit is about 6mm in diameter[200] and is borne in small clusters on top of the plants[K].

References   More on Edible Uses

Medicinal Uses

Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.
Analgesic  Cathartic  Febrifuge  Kidney  Ophthalmic

The leaves and stems are analgesic, cathartic and febrifuge[257]. A tea has been used in the treatment of aches and pains, kidney and lung ailments, coughs, fevers etc[222]. A strong decoction has been used as an eye wash[222, 257]. The fruits are rich in pectin which is a capillary tonic, antioedemic, anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic and hypotensive[218]. Pectin also inhibits carcinogenesis and protects against radiation[218]. A tea made from the roots has been used to treat infant colic[222]. The mashed roots have been strained through a clean cloth and the liquid used as an eyewash for sore eyes and to remove foreign objects from the eyes[257].

References   More on Medicinal Uses

The Bookshop: Edible Plant Books

Our Latest books on Perennial Plants For Food Forests and Permaculture Gardens in paperback or digital formats.

Food Forest Plants for Hotter Conditions: 250+ Plants For Tropical Food Forests & Permaculture Gardens.
Edible Tropical Plants

Food Forest Plants for Hotter Conditions: 250+ Plants For Tropical Food Forests & Permaculture Gardens.

More
Plants for Your Food Forest: 500 Plants for Temperate Food Forests & Permaculture Gardens.
Edible Temperate Plants

Plants for Your Food Forest: 500 Plants for Temperate Food Forests & Permaculture Gardens.

More
PFAF have eight books available in paperback and digital media.
More Books

PFAF have eight books available in paperback and digital formats. Browse the shop for more information.

Shop Now

Other Uses

Pectin  Pectin

The fruit is rich in pectin[172]. A good dense ground cover plant, growing well in light woodland[28, 208]. It takes a little while to settle down and needs weeding for the first few years[197] but becomes rampant when established and can then spread 60 - 90cm per year[208].

Special Uses

Food Forest  Ground cover

References   More on Other Uses

Cultivation details

Landscape Uses:Rock garden, Specimen, Woodland garden. Succeeds in any soil of good or moderate fertility[1]. Easily grown in a peaty soil in shade or partial shade[187]. Grows well in heavy clay soils. Grows best in sandy soils[208]. Prefers a damp soil[1]. Not suitable for alkaline soils[28, 188]. A very ornamental plant[1], it grows well with heathers[187]. Special Features:Attracts birds, Attractive foliage, North American native, Wetlands plant. The plant is heat tolerant in zones 7 through 1. (Plant Hardiness Zones show how well plants withstand cold winter temperatures. Plant Heat Zones show when plants would start suffering from the heat. The Plant Heat Zone map is based on the number of "heat days" experienced in a given area where the temperature climbs to over 86 degrees F (30°C). At this temperature, many plants begin to suffer physiological damage. Heat Zones range from 1 (no heat days) to 12 (210 or more heat days). For example Heat Zone. 11-1 indicates that the plant is heat tolerant in zones 11 through 1.) For polyculture design as well as the above-ground architecture (form - tree, shrub etc. and size shown above) information on the habit and root pattern is also useful and given here if available. An evergreen. A clumping mat former. Forming a dense prostrate carpet spreading indefinitely [1-2]. The root pattern is fibrous dividing into a large number of fine roots [1-2]. The root pattern is suckering with new plants from underground runners away from the plant [1-2].

References   Carbon Farming Information and Carbon Sequestration Information

Temperature Converter

Type a value in the Celsius field to convert the value to Fahrenheit:

Fahrenheit:

image

The PFAF Bookshop

Plants For A Future have a number of books available in paperback and digital form. Book titles include Edible Plants, Edible Perennials, Edible Trees,Edible Shrubs, Woodland Gardening, and Temperate Food Forest Plants. Our new book is Food Forest Plants For Hotter Conditions (Tropical and Sub-Tropical).

Shop Now

Plant Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame or in an outdoors seedbed if there is sufficient seed[80, 113]. The seed must be separated from the fruit flesh since this contains germination inhibitors[80, 164]. Stored seed should be cold stratified for 3 - 4 months and sown as early as possible in the year[164]. Scarification may also help as may a period of warm stratification before the cold stratification[80, 164]. Germination, especially of stored seed, can be very slow, taking 18 months or more[164]. Prick out the seedlings of cold-frame sown seeds into individual pots as soon as they are large enough to handle and grow the plants on for their first winter in a greenhouse, planting out in the spring after the last expected frosts. Division in spring. This plant can be a bit temperamental when it is being divided. We have found it best to tease out small divisions from the sides of the clump, to avoid the need to disturb the main clump by digging it up. Try to ensure that each division has already produced some roots. Pot them up in light shade in a greenhouse and make sure that they are not allowed to become dry. Once they are rooting and growing away well, which might take 12 months, they can be planted out into their permanent positions.

Other Names

If available other names are mentioned here

Native Range

TEMPERATE ASIA: Amur, China, Habarovskij kraj, Hokkaidô, Honshu, Japan, Jilin Sheng, Korea, , North, Primorye, Sakhalin, Shikoku,Russian Federation. TROPICAL ASIA: Myanmar (north), NORTHERN AMERICA: Canada, Northwest Territories, Yukon, Québec, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Saskatchewan, Alberta, Manitoba, British Columbia, Nunavut, United States, Connecticut, Indiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Wyoming, Maryland, Virginia, New Mexico, California, Alaska, Greenland ,

Weed Potential

Right plant wrong place. We are currently updating this section. Please note that a plant may be invasive in one area but may not in your area so it’s worth checking.

Conservation Status

IUCN Red List of Threatened Plants Status :

Related Plants
Latin NameCommon NameHabitHeightHardinessGrowthSoilShadeMoistureEdibleMedicinalOther
Cornus albaTartarian DogwoodShrub3.0 3-7 FLMHSNMwe001
Cornus alternifoliaGreen Osier, Alternateleaf dogwood, Alternate Leaf Dogwood, Golden Shadows Pagoda Dogwood, Green OsiShrub6.0 3-8 FLMHNDM022
Cornus amomumSilky DogwoodShrub3.0 4-8 MLMHSNM121
Cornus asperifolia drummondiiRoughleaf DogwoodShrub4.0 5-9 FLMHNM003
Cornus australis Shrub4.0 6-9  LMHSNM103
Cornus canadensisCreeping Dogwood, Bunchberry dogwood, BunchberryPerennial0.3 2-7 FLMHSNM422
Cornus capitataBentham's CornelTree12.0 7-10 MLMHSNM413
Cornus chinensis Tree10.0 7-10  LMHSNM23 
Cornus controversaGiant Dogwood, Wedding Cake Tree,Tree15.0 5-8 FLMHSNM212
Cornus coreana Tree20.0 5-9  LMHSNM002
Cornus elliptica Tree10.0 7-10 MLMHSNM412
Cornus floridaFlowering DogwoodShrub6.0 5-9 MLMHSNM223
Cornus hemsleyi Shrub4.0 -  LMHSNM002
Cornus hongkongensis Shrub15.0 -  LMHSNM102
Cornus iberica Shrub4.0 -  LMHSNM203
Cornus kousaJapanese Dogwood, Kousa dogwood, Chinese Dogwood,Tree10.0 5-8 SLMHSNM502
Cornus kousa chinensisJapanese DogwoodTree10.0 5-8  LMHSNM502
Cornus macrophyllaLarge-Leaf DogwoodTree15.0 5-9  LMHSNM222
Cornus masCornelian Cherry, Cornelian Cherry DogwoodShrub5.0 4-8 MLMHSNM423
Cornus monbeigii Shrub5.0 6-9  LMHSNM122
Cornus multinervosa Tree8.0 -  LMHSNM202
Cornus nuttalliiMountain Dogwood, Pacific dogwood, Western DogwoodTree10.0 6-8 MLMHSNDM123
Cornus oblongaOblong-Petal DogwoodTree6.0 8-11  LMHSNM032
Cornus occidentalisWestern DogwoodShrub6.0 5-9  LMHSNM11 
Cornus officinalisShan Zhu Yu, Asiatic dogwood, Japanese Cornel DogwoodShrub10.0 5-8 MLMHSNM430
Cornus poliophylla Shrub4.0 6-9  LMHSNM122
Cornus quinquenervis Shrub3.0 4-8  LMHSNM20 
Cornus rugosaRound-Leaved DogwoodShrub3.0 4-8  LMHSNDM01 
Cornus sanguineaDogwood, Bloodtwig dogwoodShrub3.0 4-8  LMHSNM213
Cornus sericeaRed Osier Dogwood, Western dogwoodShrub2.5 2-7 FLMHSNMWe224
12

Growth: S = slow M = medium F = fast. Soil: L = light (sandy) M = medium H = heavy (clay). pH: A = acid N = neutral B = basic (alkaline). Shade: F = full shade S = semi-shade N = no shade. Moisture: D = dry M = Moist We = wet Wa = water.

 

Expert comment

Author

L.

Botanical References

43200

Links / References

For a list of references used on this page please go here

Readers comment

Add a comment

If you have important information about this plant that may help other users please add a comment or link below. Only comments or links that are felt to be directly relevant to a plant will be included. If you think a comment/link or information contained on this page is inaccurate or misleading we would welcome your feedback at [email protected]. If you have questions about a plant please use the Forum on this website as we do not have the resources to answer questions ourselves.

* Please note: the comments by website users are not necessarily those held by PFAF and may give misleading or inaccurate information.

To leave a comment please Register or login here All comments need to be approved so will not appear immediately.

Subject : Cornus Canadensis  
© 2010, Plants For A Future. Plants For A Future is a charitable company limited by guarantee, registered in England and Wales. Charity No. 1057719, Company No. 3204567.