Red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire'
Cornus sericea 'Arctic Fire' · Cornaceae Popular
A compact form of the native red twig dogwood, with dark red winter stems, and it does not sucker.
- Size
- 4 ft tall, 4 ft wide
- Zones
- 3 to 7
- Light
- Full sun to part sun
- Flowers
- Grown for its leaves; flowers late May to mid June
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Anchor
A bed built around red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire'
The planner designed this bed around red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire' when this page was made: a 16 × 8 ft (4.9 × 2.4 m) English border in zone 6, full sun. It chose the other plants from the 966 that suit those conditions, and says below why red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire' × 1, dark green leaves
- 2 Bloody cranesbill × 7, pink
- 3 Winter heath × 16, purple
- 4 White mugwort × 4, cream
- 5 False sunflower 'Summer Sun' × 3, yellow
- 6 Rose turtlehead × 8, pink
- 7 Hyacinth 'Delft Blue' × 12, blue
- 8 Easter lily × 4, white
- 9 Daffodil × 8, orange
Why this plant
- The only plant grown for its leaves. Leaf lasts all season, where a flower lasts a few weeks.
- Part of the bed's structure. Shrubs and grasses keep their shape when the perennials die down. So does winter heath.
Why here
- Anchors a back corner. At 4 ft it is one of the taller plants here, and the tallest close the ends of the bed, where they stand in front of nothing.
- A step in the back row. Next to rose turtlehead (2½ ft): no two neighbours there are the same height, so the back steps up and down like a skyline.
- One plant, alone. A shrub is seen as an object, and needs clear ground around it.
Why now
- Here for its leaves, spring to frost. They cover the 10 weeks between early March and late November when nothing on the plan is in flower.
Planned as an English border: 8 of the 9 groups (89%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. The scheme leans cool (pink, purple and blue) and uses yellow and orange for warmth, with cream and white to calm things between them. Winter heath is planted in four places along the bed, which gives it rhythm.
The planner's own design check: 13 Excellent, 4 Good.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire' goes in a border
At 4 ft it belongs at the back of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is moderately tall (3 to 4 ft).
Its job: anchor. A shrub that gives the bed permanent structure. Planted singly, as soon as the front edge is laid; everything else is arranged around it.
It brings red winter stems down to a size for an ordinary bed. Plant it where snow or a pale wall will be behind it.
- Winter colour for small gardens
- Rain gardens
- Cut stems for winter arrangements
What to plant with red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Winterberry 'Red Sprite': happy in the same moist soil.
- Switchgrass 'Shenandoah'.
- Feather reed grass 'Karl Foerster': adds the flowers, late June to early October; happy in the same moist soil.
Questions about red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire'
Does red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire' need sun or shade?
Red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire' grows in full sun (6 or more hours of direct sun a day) and part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun).
It wants soil that stays evenly moist, of average fertility, and a good soak in dry spells. Once settled in, it stands drought.
What zones does red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire' grow in?
USDA zones 3 to 7. It is hardy to zone 3, which means it survives winter nights down to about −30 °F (−34 °C).
Above zone 7 it struggles: the zones measure winter cold, but a plant's top zone usually means the summers are too hot or the winters too mild for it to rest.
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
How far apart should red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire' be planted?
3½ ft (100 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 4 ft (120 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 4 ft (120 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire' plants do I need?
At 3½ ft apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 1 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 4 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 3 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own
In a mixed border, plant it as one, planted singly: it is the bed's structure, and everything else is arranged around it.
In the bed above, the planner used one in one group.
Is red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire' poisonous to dogs and cats?
No toxicity is recorded for dogs, cats, horses or people, according to NC State Extension.
"Not toxic" is not "edible": a pet that eats a lot of any plant can be sick.
Do deer eat red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire'?
Mostly not. NC State lists it as resistant to deer. No plant is proof against a hungry deer in a hard winter, but this one is low on the menu.
What does red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire' look like in winter?
Red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire' drops its leaves and stands as bare branches: it is grown for winter colour for small gardens and cut stems for winter arrangements. That is when to see its shape, and to prune it if it needs pruning.
Is red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire' good for bees and butterflies?
Red twig dogwood 'Arctic Fire' is visited by pollinators, specialist bees, butterflies and songbirds.
It is a host plant: the caterpillars of spring azure feed on its leaves. A butterfly can only lay its eggs on its host plants, so these do more for it than any nectar flower.
It is native to the United States and Canada (this is a named variety of the native plant).
More Cornus
- Bloodtwig dogwood 'Midwinter Fire' Cornus sanguinea 'Midwinter Fire'
- Cornelian cherry Cornus mas
- Red osier dogwood Cornus sericea
- Siberian dogwood Cornus alba 'Sibirica'
- Tatarian dogwood 'Ivory Halo' Cornus alba 'Bailhalo' (Ivory Halo)
- Variegated red twig dogwood Cornus alba 'Elegantissima'
- Yellow twig dogwood Cornus sericea 'Flaviramea'
In these guides
Every fact on record
- Type
- Shrub
- Size
- 4 ft (120 cm) tall, 4 ft (120 cm) wide
- Plant
- 3½ ft (100 cm) apart
- Height class
- Moderately tall (3 to 4 ft)
- Place in the bed
- Back
- Flowers
- Late May to mid June; dense clusters; white
- Leaves
- Medium texture, deciduous; dark green
- Shape
- Rounded, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 3 to 7
- Light
- Full sun, part sun
- Soil
- Average, evenly moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- Light, in spring
- Family
- Cornaceae
- Comes from
- North America
- Attracts
- Pollinators, specialist bees, butterflies, songbirds
- Host plant for
- Spring azure
- Stands up to
- Deer, drought, wet soil, erosion
Checked against NC State Extension. Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.