Saturn® Dogwood
Cornus rutgersensis 'Saturn®'
Mature Height: 12-20 ft.
Mature Spread: 15-20 ft.
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| Bloom Color: | White |
| Bloom Period: | Mid spring |
| Fall Color: | Red Rusty hues |
| Foliage Color: | Green |
| Genus & Species: | Cornus rutgersensis 'Saturn®' |
| Growth Rate: | Slow |
| Mature Height: | 12-20 ft. |
| Mature Spread: | 15-20 ft. |
| Soil Type: | Adaptable, but prefers moist, well draining soil that is rich in organic matter |
| Sun Exposure: | Full sun, partial shade, partial sun |
| Zone: | 5 to 8 |
Saturn is an excellent cornus florida x kousa with hybrid vigor. This fast-growing hybrid typically reaches 15 to 30 feet in height with a spread of 15 to 20 feet, displaying the mix of vertical and horizontal branching architecture that makes dogwoods such elegant looking landscape trees. In late-spring, Saturn® pops showy white bloom bracts, with surrounding clusters of tiny, chartreuse true flowers. The dark green, simple leaves emerge in spring with characteristic red margins, providing a handsome backdrop through summer before departing for fall in outstanding combinations of purple, orange, green and red.
Landscape Value
Saturn® makes an excellent specimen tree, border accent, or grouped planting, performing admirably in full sun to partial shade due to hybrid vigor. This hybrid is quite disease resistance—specifically, resistance to both dogwood anthracnose (Discula destructiva) and the dreaded dogwood borer. It also shows resistance or high tolerance to powdery mildew. Best grown in organically rich, acidic soils that remain consistently moist but well-drained, Saturn® appreciates mulch to keep its shallow roots cool and happy during summer.
History & Breeding
Saturn® emerged from the Rutgers University dogwood breeding program under Dr. Elwin R. Orton, Jr., who began his work in 1965 with a singular goal: save the dogwood. When dogwood anthracnose ravaged native Cornus florida populations in the 1970s, Dr. Orton set about crossing the disease-susceptible American flowering dogwood with the hardier Asian kousa dogwood (C. kousa). These species bloom at different times, which introduced a problem that Orton solved this through careful manipulation of pollen storage in cold chambers and warm greenhouses. Playing matchmaker with plant dormancy cycles [2]. In the 1990s, following the release of his Stellar® series, and supposedly at the urging of a famous Tennessee plantsman [1], Orton introduced Saturn® (along with Hyperion®) as a direct F1 hybrid, earning the distinction of being one of the first successful C. florida × C. kousa crosses. The hybrid was formally named Cornus × rutgersensis in honor of its institutional birthplace, and Saturn® received U.S. Plant Patent #17768. Propagation occurs through budding and grafting onto seedling rootstock of either parent species.
Wildlife & Ecological Value
As an F1 hybrid, it produces sterile fruit with minimal pulp and no fully formed seeds. This means Saturn® won't be hosting the wildlife buffet that makes Cornus florida so valuable to birds seeking high-fat, high-calcium sustenance during fall migration. The spring blooms do attract pollinators—adrenid and halictid bees are believed to visit the flowers, just as they do with both parent species. However, if wildlife value ranks high on your landscape priorities, consider that Saturn's® sterility comes with the trade-off of reduced ecological function in the food web.
[1] Dirr, Manual of Woody Landscape Plants, 6th ed., 2009.
[2] https://research.rutgers.edu/agricultural-products/dogwoods/history
General care for any tree or shrub is easy, but like any living thing will require your attention. Please educate yourself and follow these simple rules.
What a wonderful business; I will be returning to this family-owned business in the spring when they have restocked. My single purchase was a 4' Samaritan Kousa Dogwood, which arrived looking perfect. I recycle, so the chunks of paper which held the tree to the side for protection will be reused. Also, bundling the roots in a moist package was so much more user- and travel-friendly than a heavy bucket or, worse still, burlap. I LOVE THIS COMPANY. The tree has been planted for a week, and the buds are opening beautifully. The trunk is very straight, and there is wonderful symmetry. This will be such a beauty when grown. Thank you, thank you.
Love the tree. Strong, straight and healthy. Thanks
I love this little tree. I ordered on April 26th or 27th and received and planted it on April 30th. It came bareroot and dormant with a very healthy root system. It's now May 23rd and it's got lots of leaf buds and is 4 feet from the ground. I love it and can't wait to see it flower.
My tree arrived beautifully packaged with no broken branches. It was at least 30 inches tall with healthy leaf buds and has a beautiful form. I would definitely recommend this company!
The tree was shoved into a box that was too small. The top quarter of the tree was broken to fit it in the box.
Its only a twig right now with NO leaves or flowers. Hopefully it will grow to a gorgeous tree.
Nice size and healthy tree. The trunk has a bend from a very ugly union. Looks like it’s been done by an undergrad at Rutgers University ! But it’s fine.
Stellar Nova and Aurora, were in separate orders - late April and early March 2026. Each arrived within four days via USPS. Easy to plant, leafed out within 10 days, and appear to be doing well. The Nova bloomed this year and held blooms for about a month.
My tree is still small, but looking as healthy as when it arrived!
Amazing tree and great customer support, they even checked on me to see how thectree was doing
The dogwood trees were delivered very healthy and the shipping container was excellent. The planting instructions were followed and the trees have fully leafed out and are in great shape!
Travis was extremely helpful in getting the shipping timing right.
Very happy with my experience!
Don't know if you received my message. Please let me know
Gary
The tree arrived in perfect condition, carefully packaged and healthy. Look forward to watching it leaf out and flourish.
Easy to order. Arrived in good condition. Leaves were slow to pop but are doing fine now.
Thanks
Tree came as promised. Was healthy and ready to plant. Has grown and shows leaves already. Can't wait to see it bloom.
My tree arrived and it was packaged so nicely. I have it planted on my backyard making a dogwood grove. This tree is growing nicely and getting some buds already. I’m looking forward to
Watching g it grow
So far so good, tree looks in good condition. Looking forward to seeing it grow up.
It's a healthy and beautiful dog would I love the leaves the leaves are out now I'm tickled to death about it and for the value of that tree well worth it thank you so much
Love my new Kousa dogwood tree!! I received it within 4 days of my purchase. It is in a dormant stage, and I planted it according to the instructions. Along with the mulch. I hope to see some leaves one day, but I probably won't see a bloom this year. It will be beautiful when it grows, as I have been looking for this color for over a year now. Thank you New Blooms for offering this tree at a price I could afford.
Very nice, good size and healthy. Trees packed well in shipping. Good communication, thanks!
Nice size tree with extensive roots
This tree was delivered loooking like a stick and after being planted for about two weeks it still has not shown any sign of growing
Hello James, this is Travis. We appriciate your review. What you are describing is exactly what a healthy bare root tree should look like when it arrives. Our trees are field grown and shipped directly from cold storage, so they come to you dormant. Two weeks is still early 2-4 is what we usually expect for a new bare root tree. It will already be growing roots if planted correctly and kept moist during this time. If you scratch the bark gently with your thumb you should seen green underneath this is the sign of a tree that's going to break bud and leaf out in a few weeks. If you have any further questions feel free to reach out directly to us at support@newblooms.com. With this busy time of year it may take me 24 hours to reply, but I try to stay on top of it a few times a day.
The dogwood tree was delayed by USPS. Travis assured me that the tree was packaged with roots protected. Tree arrived today and is a beautiful tree with good form. It was packaged snugly with no wiggle room and roots were enclosed in a plastic bag. I loved the care in packaging. I am especially pleased with the beautiful shape of the tree.
Beautiful healthy dogwood tree. Well developed roots and nice size. I am very happy with it and I can't wait to see it bloom. Thank you!!
No problems.
Ordered 4 special-variety dogwoods to help combat the powdery mildew in my area. The bare root trees arrived looking tall and healthy, and after being in the ground a couple weeks ago, I’m seeing little leaf buds popping up. Trees look great so far!
Outstanding quality from this nursery. I ordered a 'Venus' and a 'Snow' dogwood, and both arrived in excellent condition. The trees were robust and showed great vigor right out of the box. They transitioned perfectly into the garden and are clearly high-quality stock.
On time packaged correctly