The Ivory Halo® Dogwood, otherwise known as the Cornus Alba ‘Bailhalo’ or Kousa Dogwood ‘Miss Satomi’, Japanese Dogwood ‘Miss Satomi’, Cornus kousa ‘Satomi’, Cornus kousa var. chinensis ‘Satomi’, Cornus kousa ‘Rosabella’, Cornus kousa ‘New Red’, is a rather well known shrub plant by gardening enthusiasts around the world.
Best known for its low maintenance and moderate growth, this shrub will likely liven up your house (or garden) with its variegated colored leaves. But, only if you learn how to take proper care of it for it to thrive.
This is why all the topics you need to know in order to achieve this will be covered in this Ivory Halo® Dogwood Care Guide. Ready? Let’s go!
The fundamental caring guidelines for every Ivory Halo® Dogwood can be summed up into the following:
- Water: The Ivory Halo® Dogwood grows best with regular watering to keep the soil moist during the dry season. Reduce watering once the plant is established.
- Light: Keep your Cornus Alba ‘Bailhalo’ in an environment where it can receive partial to full sun on a daily basis.
- Soil: Make sure to keep the Ivory Halo® Dogwood in soil with moist but well-draining to well draining properties, so ideally, one that is made of sand, loam, and clay.
That’s it – sunlight, water and soil! The basic 3 fundamentals for all plant care, and with the Ivory Halo® Dogwood this is no exception. With these three elements, your leafy friend will live healthy and happy.
Scientific / Botanical Aspects
In botanical terms, the Ivory Halo® Dogwood belongs to the Cornaceae family, the genus Cornus and the species Kousa, hence its scientific (or botanical) name Cornus Alba ‘Bailhalo’ (KOR-nus AL-ba).
As with other Cornus’s, the Ivory Halo® Dogwood is a deciduous plant, which means it will shed its leaves annually once autumn comes.
Growing Region
The Ivory Halo® Dogwood is a plant native to the Sikkim and China to Temp. Eastern Asia.
You might be wondering why your Ivory Halo® Dogwood’s native region is important. Well, if you know where your plant originally came from, you’ll know which environment conditions it prefers, and with it, knowledge on how to replicate it at home.
With this in mind, the Cornus Alba ‘Bailhalo’ will be most used to the heat zones in the 5 – 8 region, as the plant hardiness level falls between 5b, 5a, 6b, 6a, 7b, 7a, 8b, 8a and the ideal climate zone is between 2, 2A, 2B, 3, 3A, 3B, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 14, 15, 16, 17.
Growth and Size
Growth
In terms of size and growth, the Ivory Halo® Dogwood is a relatively moderate grower, which makes things somewhat easy for any plant enthusiast.
Size
But, how big does the Ivory Halo® Dogwood actually get? What should you expect in terms of size? Let’s dive right in…
The Cornus Alba ‘Bailhalo’ can grow up to 12′ – 15′ (3.6m – 4.5m) in 12′ – 15′ (3.6m – 4.5m) and 12′ – 15′ (3.6m – 4.5m) in 12′ – 15′ (3.6m – 4.5m).
Also, expect it to grow in a wonderful compact, and rounded shape, which is something worthwhile to remember when making your garden landscape plans.
Water
In terms of watering, the Ivory Halo® Dogwood is a fairly complicated plant to take care of.
This is mostly because it has a not so straightforward watering schedule and somewhat regular watering needs.
Specifically, most experts agree that the Cornus Alba ‘Bailhalo’ grows best with regular watering to keep the soil moist during the dry season. Reduce watering once the plant is established.
Which is why it is considered a plant with relatively average needs in terms of water.
Watering
As a rule of thumb, you should remember to keep your Ivory Halo® Dogwood in soil with moist but well-draining to well draining characteristics, as these will guarantee the right conditions for your plant to grow and thrive.
When you consider this, this is why you should aim to choose soil that has good drainage properties to keep the right moisture levels at all times.
In our experience, the famous ‘thumb’ or ‘finger’ test is what works best for the Ivory Halo® Dogwood since with it, you will be able to give it the right amount of water, every time – regardless of the environment or placement where you do decide to keep it.
Soil Mix
As mentioned earlier, the Ivory Halo® Dogwood prefers to have soil with good drainage properties at all times, reason why you need to make the soil mix out of sand, loam, and clay.
In addition to this, expert gardeners recommend having preferably alkaline, acid or neutral soil.
Light and Exposure
In terms of light & exposure, the Ivory Halo® Dogwood requires partial to full sun in order for it to thrive under the right conditions.
Most experts agree that this shrub will do well as long as you keep it in partial to full sun, and it will be able to grow properly.
Specifically, we recommend that you place your Cornus Alba ‘Bailhalo’ in little to partial shade (only 2-6 hours of direct sunlight a day), to full and direct sun (more 6 hours of direct sunlight per day).
Season
Being a deciduous plant, the Ivory Halo® Dogwood will shed its leaves annually once autumn comes.
But, you can expect it to have its ‘prime-time’ during the spring (late), the summer (early), the fall, and during the winter.
Flowers
You can expect your Ivory Halo® Dogwood to flower around the spring months from April to June (spring).
The Ivory Halo® Dogwood produces some beautiful white, or pink and white flowers around this time of year.
Foliage
The leaves from the Ivory Halo® Dogwood have a beautiful variegated color during most of the year.
In particular, they have a simple arrangement with a opposite organization in its leaves.
You can expect the leaves from your Cornus Alba ‘Bailhalo’ to be around (1-3 inches) in size.
Attracts, Tolerance and Resistance
The Ivory Halo® Dogwood is well known for being able to attract butterflies and birds, so keep that in mind when choosing your plant, as you’ll likely end up finding one or another in your garden.
Additionally, it has a special tolerance for animals like deer, so don’t worry if any of these come along, your Cornus Alba ‘Bailhalo’ will be fine.
Garden
Now, let’s talk garden and how your Ivory Halo® Dogwood will look best in it.
Most Cornus Alba ‘Bailhalo’ owners agree that this shrub will look great in most cottage, contemporary and rustic gardens of all types.
Other owners consider that they complement well most gardens of prairie and meadow, informal and cottage, and in traditional garden styles.
In particular, the Ivory Halo® Dogwood’s best location within your garden is in beds and borders, and in patio and containers, others use it for landscaping in a very wet areas, urban garden, specimen, mass planting, hedge, erosion control, border, or a woodland garden.
Companion Plants
Ivory Halo® Dogwood’s do well with some other plants beside it. One good companion plant is the Weigela, which will pair up nicely with your leafy friend.
Others consider that a nice Buxus will work well too, so choose whichever you find works best for you!
Conclusion
Even though we covered a lot of care information for your Ivory Halo® Dogwood, remember the basics: sunlight, soil and water, as these should be enough to grow a healthy plant at home.
