Cornus controversa 'Variegata'

wedding cake tree

• Position: full sun to part shade
• Soil: deep, fertile, moisture-retentive soil
• Rate of growth: slow-growing to average
• Flowering period: June
• Hardiness: fully hardy
  
  Known as the wedding-cake tree, because of its distinctive, horizontal, tiered habit, this tree makes a lovely focal point for a small to medium-sized garden. It has bright green leaves with bold, creamy-white margins, which turn red-purple in autumn and produces clusters of white flowers in June. Although it tolerates dappled shade, it performs best in fertile, moisture-retentive soil in full sun.
  
  
• Garden care: Incorporate a quantity of well-rotted garden compost or horse manure in the planting hole to improve the moisture-retentive qualities of the soil. The tree requires no regular pruning, since this would interfere with its graceful, tiered habit.