Bentham's Cornel
Cornus capitata

Family: Cornaceae

What it is like

Cornus capitata is an evergreen Tree growing to 12 m (39ft) by 12 m (39ft) at a medium rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 8. It is in leaf all year, in flower from June to July, and the seeds ripen from September to November. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Insects. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and can grow in heavy clay soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils and can grow in very alkaline soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil. The plant can tolerate maritime exposure.

Height (m): 12

Where it is found

Forests and shrubberies to 3400 metres in the Himalayas. Moist hillsides at elevations of 1700 - 2600 metres in Nepal. Evergreen and mixed forests, 1000 - 3200 metres.

E. Asia - China to the Himalayas.

Conservation Status:

Countries/locations it is found in

How it is used

Food

Rating: 4

Fruit - raw or cooked. A bitter-sweet flavour, tasting like an over-ripe banana. The fruit can also be used in preserves. The fruit is about 25mm in diameter, it is fleshy with a number of seeds and a tough slightly bitter skin. Our experience is that some trees can produce quite pleasant tasting fruits, but many others produce fruit with a distinct and unpleasant bitterness. The fruit ripens in late autumn to early winter and will fail to ripe properly if the weather is very cold.

Medicine

Rating: 1

The bark is used medicinally. No further information is given, though the bark is a source of tannin which is used as an astringent.

Astringent: Produces contraction in living tissue, reducing the flow of secretions and discharges of blood, mucus, diarrhoea etc.

Other

Rating: 3

The branches and leaves are a source of tannin. Wood - very hard, close grained but warps when being seasoned. Used mainly for fuel and for making tools..

Fuel: Usually wood, plant materials that have been mentioned as being a good fuel.

Tannin: An astringent substance obtaied from plants, it is used medicinally, as a dye and mordant, stabilizer in pesticide etc.

Wood: A list of the trees and shrubs that are noted for having useful wood.

Food Forest: Plants for Edible Forest Gardens and Food Forests.

How it is grown

An easily grown plant, it succeeds in any soil of good or moderate fertility, ranging from acid to shallow chalk. Grows well in heavy clay soils. Succeeds in full sun or light shade. Prefers semi-shade. This species is hardy to between -5 and -10°c, it grows very well in S.W. England, self-sowing and fruiting prolifically in Cornish woodland gardens and doing well by the coast where it tolerates sea winds. Plants are not hardy in the London area, being killed even when on a south-facing wall. Another report says that it succeeds as far north as Edinburgh. Squirrels are very fond of this fruit. This species has been known to hybridize with C. kousa, the cultivar 'Norman Hadden' could be such a hybrid. Plants in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus.

Propagating it: Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame or in an outdoors seedbed if there is sufficient seed. The seed must be separated from the fruit flesh since this contains germination inhibitors. Stored seed should be cold stratified for 3 - 4 months and sown as early as possible in the year. Scarification may also help as may a period of warm stratification before the cold stratification. Germination, especially of stored seed, can be very slow, taking 18 months or more. Prick out the seedlings of cold-frame sown seeds into individual pots as soon as they are large enough to handle and grow the plants on for their first winter in a greenhouse, planting out in the spring after the last expected frosts. Cuttings of half-ripe side shoots, July/August in a frame. Cuttings of mature wood of the current year's growth, taken with a heel if possible, autumn in a cold frame. High percentage. Layering of new growth in June/July. Takes 9 months.

Best place to grow: Woodland Garden Canopy; Secondary; Sunny Edge; Dappled Shade;

Habit: Tree

Hardiness: 7-10

Growth: Medium

Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)

Shade: Semi-shade, no shade

Moisture: Moist

Things to keep in mind

Its other names

Local names

Synonyms

Benthamida capitata. B. fragifera. Dendrobenthamia capitata.