Cornus mas
| Cornelian cherry (Cornus mas) | |
|---|---|
.jpg)
| |
| Scientific name | Cornus mas |
| Common names | Cornelian cherry; European cornel; Cornelian cherry dogwood |
| Genus | Cornus |
| Family | Cornaceae |
| Order | Cornales |
| Native range | Europe and western Asia |
| Habit | Deciduous shrub or small tree |
| Mature size | Up to about 25 ft (7.6 m) tall and 20 ft (6.1 m) wide |
| Fruit | Dark-red, oblong drupe with one seed |
Cornus mas, the cornelian cherry, is a deciduous shrub or small tree native across parts of Europe and western Asia. Yellow flowers appear in late winter or early spring, before or around leaf emergence, followed by dark-red, one-seeded drupes.[1][2] Ripe fruit is used fresh and in preserves and regional drinks.[3]
Description[edit | edit source]
Plants may reach about 25 feet (7.6 m) in height and 20 feet (6.1 m) in spread, although a smaller shrub form is also described.[1][2] The species can sucker, so it may be maintained as a multistemmed clump or have basal suckers removed where a single-stem or contained form is wanted.[1]
The dense yellow flowers open on bare wood before the leaves. The fruit is an oblong, one-seeded drupe that becomes dark red as it ripens.[1] Measurements from selected Turkish fruit types ranged from 1.496 to 4.116 g in weight and from 15.95 to 20.77 mm in length; acidity, sugar content, and flesh-to-seed ratio also varied among the sampled types, so these figures are not fixed values for every plant or cultivar.[3]
Cultivation[edit | edit source]
Soil and water[edit | edit source]
Cornelian cherry is associated with moist woodland and calcareous soils. In cultivation it is suited to moist, rich, well-drained ground and tolerates several soil textures.[2] Extension guidance likewise specifies moist, well-drained rich soil.[1] Keep the root zone draining freely: a moist site is not the same as persistently waterlogged soil. Remove basal suckers when a single-stem or contained form is wanted; retain selected suckers when a multistemmed clump is useful.[1]
Sun and humidity[edit | edit source]
The species grows in full sun or partial shade.[1][2] Partial shade fits its moist woodland association, while full sun is also supported for open cultivation. Site choice should prioritize light, drainage, and soil moisture; a fixed humidity target is not needed for this guidance.
Seasonal changes[edit | edit source]
Cornus mas is deciduous. Flowers are produced in late winter or early spring, commonly described as February–March, before the leaves; fruit follows, with mid-summer timing in extension guidance and September harvest timing recorded for selected Turkish material.[1][2][3] The difference shows why local flowering and fruit color are more useful guides than one calendar date. The plant's seasonal rhythm is a cool-season flowering period followed by fruit development and summer-to-early-autumn harvest, depending on climate and selection.
Propagation[edit | edit source]
Fresh seed can be cleaned of its flesh and sown. For stored seed, the examined cultivation account lists three to four months of cold stratification before sowing and warns that germination may take 18 months or more.[2] That schedule is compiled guidance rather than a reported controlled trial, so seed lots and conditions may differ.
Semi-ripe cuttings are listed for July or August, mature-wood cuttings for autumn, and layering for June or July.[2] Extension guidance also lists semi-hardwood or hardwood cuttings and grafting as propagation options.[1]
Flowering, fruiting, and harvest[edit | edit source]
The small yellow flowers open before the leaves in late winter or early spring. They are described as hermaphrodite and bee-pollinated.[2] Flowering weather and insect activity can influence fruit set; pollination compatibility and bearing age vary among plants and conditions, so no universal rule or fixed age should be assumed.
Fruit color and season vary with climate and selection. Extension guidance places dark-red fruit in mid-summer, while the Turkish pomological study harvested ripe material in September.[1][3] The Turkish measurements should be read as sample-specific: the study examined selected fruit types rather than defining a species-wide harvest standard.[3]
Fruit and uses[edit | edit source]
Cornelian cherries are eaten fresh and processed into preserves, jam, marmalade, dried pulp, syrup, and soft drinks.[2][3] Selected Turkish types differed in fruit weight, dimensions, sugar, acidity, and flesh-to-seed ratio, so cultivar or seedling identity should accompany any precise pomological comparison.[3]
A UK chalk-garden grower reported a long fruiting period and red fruit used by wildlife. The observation is climate- and site-specific, with no cultivar, propagation history, or plant age supplied, so it is a bounded fruiting observation rather than a general harvest schedule.[4]
Photos[edit | edit source]
References[edit | edit source]
Image credits[edit | edit source]
- Cornus mas (1).jpg: habitus photograph by Philipp Weigell, Wikimedia Commons; CC BY 3.0. File page: Cornus mas (1).jpg.
- Cornus mas 001.JPG: flowering-habit photograph by H. Zell, Wikimedia Commons; CC BY-SA 3.0 and GFDL listed on the file page. File page: Cornus mas 001.JPG.
.jpg){kind=link}
