I noticed that my friend Bob Hyland at nearby Loomis Creek Nursery is counting his twiggy blessings, too, this week—with an ode on his website to Salix ‘Swizzlestick,’ a distinctive corkscrew willow he grows as a dramatic 60-foot hedge.
I’m making myself content with much less, but even a little ‘Winter Flame’ (hardy to Zone 4) warms the winter-weary soul. My young plant hasn’t reached full size of 8-10 feet, though at 4 feet it produces a show of yellow-, orange- and reddish-tinged stems that read as coral to my eye.
The Dutch breeder of ‘Winter Flame,’ Andre van Nijnatten, has also developed a smaller-stature version called Cornus ‘Arctic Sun’ that is earning high praise, with more twigs and a naturally compact habit (3-4 feet tall). I’m thinking a grouping of them is in order. ‘Winter Flame’ has peachy-yellow fall color as well to recommend it, below, as does its newer cousin.
Maximum color on twig dogwoods comes from younger wood, so an every-other or every-third-year “stooling” (cutting the whole shrub down to about 6 inches) is the traditional pruning method. (Think of the dramatic large-scale arrangement you can make with those twigs!)Other twiggy things to be grateful for here:
Cornus sericea ‘Silver and Gold’ (white-variegated foliage, yellow twigs) Cornus sericea Read more on awaytogarden.com