Cornus alba Ivory Halo® ('Bailhalo') – Ivory Halo® Dogwood

Ivory Halo® Dogwood is an exceptional shrub that offers a four-season visual spectacle. It captivates with its bright variegated foliage that lights up the garden all summer, but its main benefit is the striking contrast of its bright red stems that blaze in the snowy winter landscape. More compact than older varieties, it combines this long-lasting beauty with remarkable hardiness and ease of care.

Characteristics

• Foliage: It develops dense and attractive deciduous foliage. Each leaf has a green center and a wide, irregular, creamy-white margin. In the fall, the foliage takes on lovely purplish-red hues.
• Stems: The new wood is the star of the winter. After the leaves fall, the young stems reveal a spectacular, bright red colour, creating a vibrant point of interest in the winter garden.
• Flowering: In late spring, it produces clusters of small, creamy-white flowers that attract pollinators.
• Fruiting: After the flowers, small, whitish-blue berries appear in summer, adding further appeal and providing food for birds.
• Light: It thrives in full sun or partial shade. Full sun promotes the best winter stem colour.
• Habit: It forms a multi-stemmed shrub with a bushy, dense, and rounded habit.
• Growth: With a medium growth rate, it reaches a height and spread of about 1.5 to 1.8 m (5-6 feet).
• Soil: It is a very adaptable shrub that tolerates a wide range of soils, including heavy and wet soils.
• Hardiness: Extremely hardy, it faces Zone 3 winters without any problem.
• Resistance: It demonstrates excellent resistance to deer.

Uses

• Types of Use: It is spectacular in mass plantings to maximize the effect of its winter stems. It is also perfect as an informal hedge, at the back of a border, or in wet areas of the garden.
• Ornamental Features: It is the quintessential four-season shrub. The variegated foliage brightens the summer, the fall colouration is superb, and the red stems offer unparalleled winter interest.

Care

• Watering: Maintain consistently moist soil for optimal performance.
• Fertilizing: It is not very demanding, but a spring application of compost can be beneficial.
• Pruning: To get the most vivid stem colour, a renewal pruning is recommended. In early spring, cut one-third of the oldest stems (the thickest and least colourful ones) back to the ground.
• Planting: Plant it in the spring or fall in soil that retains moisture well.
• Winter Protection: No protection is required for this ultra-hardy shrub.