I think it’s official.   We are having a good old fashioned Minnesota winer!  As winter continues, I grow a bit weary of the short days and persistent cold and could use something, anything, to pick up my spirits.

Each day as I drive to the nursery office, I go past a planting of Cardinal Red Twig dogwood we installed several years ago.  The branches of the Cardinal Red Twig Dogwood are completely bare, and yet they give me just the pick me up I need.

The brilliant red color of the bark on the younger stems provides a fantastic splash of glowing color that is intensified several-fold when seen against the pristine sparkling white background of fresh snow.  It is a joyous sight to behold, and gorgeous red of the Cardinal Red Twig Dogwood reminds me that in just 6 or 8 weeks, snowbanks will be receding and other splashes of color soon will follow, starting with the spring wildflowers.

Cardinal Red Twig Dogwood are easy to grow in a wide range of site conditions.  For the very best red bark color, plant these tough and hardy shrubs in a sunny area where on clear days the bark positively glows.