Cornus alba 'Hessei'
Common name: 
Siberian Dogwood
Hessei Dogwood
Pronunciation: 
KOR-nus AHL-ba
Family: 
Cornaceae
Genus: 
Cornus
Synonyms: 
Cornus sericea 'Hessei"
Cornus saguinea 'Compressa'
Cornus hessei
Type: 
Broadleaf
Native to (or naturalized in) Oregon: 
No
  • A deciduous, dwarf shrub with dense, upright branches and a spreading habit. It may reach a height of 10 ft (3 m) in 6-10 years.   Leaves are small, obtuse shaped, crinkled, crowded and green; but turn purple in fall.   Flowers are creamy-white and borne in dense clusters up to 4 cm across.   Ripening white fruit contrasts sharply with the purple leaves.
  • Sun to part shade.  Some recommend pruning old stems to the ground to encourage new stems with better yellow color.  Apparently the flowers are sterile and, therefore, does not set seed.
  • Hardy to USDA Zone 2      The plant arose at Hesse’s Nurseries in Germany in a batch of Crataegus seedlings from seed received from the St Petersburg Botanic Garden and raised by Herman Albrecht Hesse (1852 - 1937).  Apparently it was introduced around 1960 at the School of Horticulture in Budapest, Hungary as Cornus sanguinea 'Compressa'. The native country of this very distinct little dogwood shrub is unknow, but some suspect N.E. Asia. It is unlike any other dogwood in its dense, very compact habit and wrinkly dark foliage. (Cornus sanguinea 'Compressa' and Cornus alba 'Hessei' from the website, Trees and Shrubs Online (treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/cornus/cornus-alba/). Accessed 2025-11-01.)  It is likely that Cornus sanguinea 'Compressa' and Cornus alba 'Hessei' are the sample plant but sold under differrent names. 

 

Click image to enlarge
  • plant habit, winter

    plant habit, winter

  • plant habit

    plant habit

  • foliage

    foliage

  • leafy shoot tip

    leafy shoot tip