Red stemmed cornus

[flybynight]

Hi there

I've got a couple of cornus alba sibirica recently (OK, today)- the ones that are red stemmed in winter allegedly. Thing is, at the moment, the stems are definitely light green. Do they colour up as the cold weather comes in? Or have I been sold a pup, as it were? I bought them at an RHS garden, so they should be the right thing. But now they are in the ground, I am doubting.

Anyone know?

I think you have to prune them to encourage new shoots which start out red. No idea what time of year you're supposed to do that, sorry.

Pruning advice for Cornus .... cut new growth back hard to within 5-7cm (2-3in) from the ground in March...

For red and green stemmed cornus, cut each branch down to 2" in February and then every other year after that.

So. To sum up, the stems will stay green until the new growth after I prune them next Feb? Thats fine. I can live with that.
Thank you!

You're very welcome flybynight!
Pruning cornus like I said above will enhance the colour. If you don't prune then the colour will eventually fade, as it's the new stems that have the best colour.

Hmmm I'm no expert but I think the stems should be red through the year. You may have a different cultivar.

Best thing to do is pop down the garden centre and compare notes.

Just an update, in case anyone is interested! The stems have gone red since going in the ground. Very happy with them - they work very nicely with the red hips of the rosa moyesii in front of them.

They need a bit of sun to go red; mine doesn't get enough so isn't as good as itcould be!