Franco's Red Dogwood

Franco's Red Dogwood (Cornus florida 'Franco's Red')

Franco's Red Dogwood is a colorful selection of native flowering dogwood valued for its rich spring bracts, graceful branching, and strong seasonal interest. Its dark pink to red spring display brings bold color to front yards, mixed borders, woodland edges, and small lawn plantings. After flowering, green foliage carries the tree through summer before shifting to attractive red-purple tones in fall. With its manageable size and classic dogwood form, Franco's Red Dogwood adds structure, color, and native ornamental value to well-sited residential landscapes.

Distinctive Features

Franco's Red Dogwood produces showy dark pink to red bracts in early to mid spring, often with lighter coloring near the center as the bracts mature. The tree develops a small deciduous canopy with layered branching and a rounded to spreading habit, giving it the familiar structure associated with flowering dogwood. Medium green leaves provide a clean summer appearance before turning red-purple to burgundy in autumn. Red fruit may develop in late summer to fall, adding seasonal interest and providing a food source for birds when fruiting occurs.

Growing Conditions

• Sun: Grows best in partial sun to partial shade, with morning sun and afternoon shade especially helpful in hot or exposed locations.
• Soil: Prefers fertile, acidic, well-drained soil with good organic matter and steady root-zone moisture.
• Water: Performs best with medium, even moisture, especially during establishment, drought, and extended summer heat.
• USDA Zones: Hardy in USDA Zones 5 to 9.
• Mature Size: Typically reaches about 15 to 25 feet tall and 15 to 20 feet wide with age.
• Habit: Forms a small deciduous ornamental tree with a rounded to spreading canopy and graceful layered branching.

Ideal Uses

• Focal Point: Use as a colorful spring-flowering focal point in front yards, entry gardens, courtyards, or small lawn areas where its red to dark pink bracts can stand out.
• Woodland Edge: Plant along woodland margins or lightly shaded garden edges where it can receive filtered light and consistent moisture.
• Mixed Border: Add to layered shrub and perennial borders for spring flowers, fall color, wildlife value, and small-tree structure.
• Foundation Planting: Use near larger homes or broad foundation beds where a colorful ornamental tree can soften architecture without overwhelming the space.
• Specimen Tree: Plant as a standalone ornamental tree where its branching, spring blooms, fall foliage, and fruit can be appreciated from multiple angles.

Low Maintenance Care

• Watering: Water deeply during the first few seasons and during dry periods to maintain even moisture without keeping the soil saturated.
• Mulching: Apply a broad mulch ring to conserve moisture, moderate soil temperature, and reduce competition from turfgrass.
• Pruning: Prune lightly during dormancy or after flowering to remove dead, damaged, crossing, or crowded branches while preserving the natural form.
• Fertilizing: Fertilize only when needed based on soil conditions, avoiding excessive nitrogen that can encourage weak or overly soft growth.
• Deer Protection: Protect young trees from deer browsing and trunk rubbing in landscapes with moderate to heavy deer pressure.
• Site Care: Provide good air circulation, avoid planting too deeply, and keep mulch pulled back from the trunk to support long-term health.

Why Choose Franco's Red Dogwood?

• Rich Spring Color: Produces dark pink to red bracts that create a bold seasonal display in the spring landscape.
• Classic Dogwood Form: Develops graceful layered branching and a refined small-tree structure with strong ornamental appeal.
• Seasonal Interest: Offers spring flowers, green summer foliage, red-purple fall color, and possible red fruit for birds.
• Manageable Size: Fits residential landscapes where a smaller ornamental tree is more practical than a large shade tree.
• Native Character: Brings the familiar beauty and ecological value of Cornus florida into designed garden spaces.

Franco's Red Dogwood is an excellent choice for gardeners who want a flowering dogwood with deeper spring color and classic native character. Its rich bracts, graceful branching, fall foliage, and potential wildlife value make it a beautiful addition to landscapes with fertile soil, consistent moisture, and the right balance of sun and shade.