Red Osier Dogwood vs Canada Plum - TreeTime.ca

Red Osier Dogwood vs Canada Plum

Cornus sericea

Prunus nigra

COMING SOON

(new stock expected: fall of 2026)

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

Red Osier Dogwood
Canada Plum

Red Osier Dogwood is a small deciduous shrub that features deep red stems and twigs year-round, with creamy white flowers in the spring. This shrub will add a nice pop of color to your yard.

Red Osier Dogwood is an excellent soil stabilizer. It is fast growing and becomes drought tolerant once well established.

Canada Plum is a cold-hardy wild plum native to North America with small red fruit. They ripen in mid to late summer, with bitter, astringent skin surrounding sweet, slightly acidic flesh that clings to the stone. While some enjoy eating the plums fresh, they are more commonly used for baking and preserves. It is considered a universal pollinizer for other plum varieties and is often used for grafting or as a rootstock.

White to pink flowers appear in spring, often before the leaves, providing an early source of nectar and pollen for native bees and other pollinators. Birds and other wildlife also feed on the fruit, adding to its ecological value. Canada Plum can grow as a small tree or large, multi-stemmed shrub. It is well suited to a variety of projects, including fruit orchards for cross-pollination, as well as pollinator plantings, naturalization, and restoration projects.

Red Osier Dogwood Quick Facts

Canada Plum Quick Facts

Zone: 2a
Zone: 2b
Height: 2.7 m (9 ft)
Height: 5 m (15 ft)
Spread: 1.8 m (6 ft)
Spread: 4 m (12 ft)
Light: partial shade, full sun
Light: partial shade, full sun
Moisture: normal, wet
Moisture: normal, wet
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: fast
Life span: medium
Life span: medium
Suckering: medium
Suckering: high


Fall colour: dark red
Fall colour: attractive yellow, gold
Bark: dark red, showy
Bark: grey and scaly with age
Flowers: white
Flowers: white
Fruit: under 1 inch round yellow fruits with red blush to completely red, tart skin with sweet flesh
Berries: white waxy
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no

In row spacing: 0.9 m (3 ft)

Between row spacing: 5 m (16 ft)
Native to: AB, BC, SK, MB, ON, QC, NS, NB, NL, YT, NT, NU, PE
Native to: MB, ON, QC, NB
Other Names: american dogwood, california dogwood, creek dogwood, dogberry tree, red dogwood, red twig dogwood, redosier dogwood, redstem dogwood, western dogwood
Other Names: american plum, black plum, canada plum, horse plum, wild plum