Cornelian cherry: cultivation, care & use

The Cornelian cherry was an important fruit in earlier times and is found in many places in hedges and on the edges of forests. We give tips on planting, harvesting and processing the Cornelian cherry.

In the Middle Ages, the cornel was used together with the Medlar (Mespilus germanica) as an important fruit tree, but was forgotten again and is now an omnipresent wild fruit that occurs in many gardens. In this article you will learn everything about the Cornelian cherry, its history, requirements for the location, planting and care as well as the use of stone fruits.

Cornelian cherry: flowering, origin and characteristics

The cornel (Cornus mas) belongs to the dogwood family (Cornaceae) and occurs naturally from Europe to Asia Minor. The wild form is often found in bird protection hedges, on forest edges and sparse mixed forests. The Cornelian cherry is also known in German-speaking countries as a dirndl bush, animal loaf tree, herlitz or yellow dogwood. The edible Cornelian cherry has been used as food since prehistoric times, from the older Iron Age from 800 BC. Chr. the oldest finds come from kernels in clay pots.

The cornel can live for more than 100 years. During this time it grows into a tree or large shrub with a height and width of 6 to 8 m. It increases in height by around 20 to 30 cm per year and is therefore one of the less competitive, comparatively slow-growing trees. On the red-brown and green-gray shoots sit the egg-shaped, elliptical leaves of the cornel, which are glossy green in summer and yellowish to red-orange in autumn. Typically, the leaves are hairy above and below, wavy on the edge and 4 to 10 cm long. The sun-yellow cornel blossoms in spherical umbels appear from February to April, long before the first leaflets appear. They are a valuable source of food for all kinds of pollinators such as bees and bumblebees.

From mid-August to the end of September, the approximately 2 cm large, oval-shaped, edible fruits of the cornel ripen, which now turn deep red and become soft. The stone fruit surrounds itself with tasty, fruity and sour tasting, pleasantly sweet pulp. When fully ripe, the fruits fall off and provide food for numerous animals such as dormouse, dormouse and various birds in autumn. The Cornelian cherry is an abundant wild fruit tree with a yield of 20 to 40 kg per bush and up to 70 kg of old plants per year.

The most popular varieties of the cornel

The Cornelian cherry has been cultivated for more than 100 years, nowadays mainly at the HBLFA Schönbrunn in Vienna and at the Institute for Fruit Breeding in Bojnice in Slovakia, also in Bulgaria and the Caucasus region. The main focus here is on the fruit size and taste. We present the most popular varieties of cornel and their properties.

• ˈAureaˈ: Slow growing Cornelian cherry with strikingly light, yellow-green foliage and a height of up to 4 m.
• ˈJolicoˈ: Cornelian cherry with fruits over 3 cm in size and later ripening from mid-September. Bright red fruits with a yield of 20 to 40 kg per adult shrub. The variety originated at the HBLFA in Schönbrunn in Vienna.
• ˈKasanlakˈ: pear-shaped, large fruits with a dark red color and early ripening from mid-August. The variety comes from Bulgaria and reaches a height of 2 to 3 m.
• ˈPancherevoˈ: This narrow variety reaches a height of up to 5 m and grows more like a cornel cherry tree than a shrub. The large fruits weigh up to 15 g each.
• ˈSchönbrunner Gourmet-Dirndlˈ: A breed of HBLFA Schönbrunn with very sweet, pear-shaped, 3 cm large fruits and a yield of 15 to 25 kg per bush.
• ˈYellowˈ: Yellow Cornelian cherry with a very early ripening time from mid-August and about 2 cm large, milder and less sour-tasting fruits. Very good pollinator for all yellow cornel varieties.

tip: The Japanese cornel looks very similar to one another (Cornus officinalis) from that about a week before Cornus mas flowers and the young shoots are colored brown instead of green-red. But this Far Eastern species also produces edible red fruits and has a pretty autumn color.

Planting the Cornelian cherry: location and procedure

The ideal location for the Cornelian cherry is sunny to partially shaded. She loves warmth and reaches amazing sizes in protected locations. Here the Cornelian cherry is completely hardy and can also cope with cooler areas. In terms of the soil, too, it makes few demands, because it grows on both sandy and loamy or humus-rich soils, as long as these are not too dry. The acidity of the soil can be slightly acidic to strongly alkaline, but a pH value in the calcareous range of 7.4 and higher is preferred.
The native wild fruit is suitable for planting as a hedge, but Cornelian cherries as a high trunk can also be planted as an ornamental tree with a stand alone in the garden. Cornelian cherries are weakly competitive when they are young, which should be taken into account when planting in combination with other woody plants and shrubs. Here the slow growing Cornelian cherries should be exposed so that they have more space and are not overgrown.

Autumn between October and mid-November is the best time to plant the cornel cherry bushes, as they are already shedding leaves and turning into hibernation. Until the leaves shoot in the spring of the following year, the plant concentrates only on the formation of roots and can grow well. Alternatively, planting in early March is also possible, but the Cornelian cherries then have to be watered regularly in summer because there is not yet sufficient root mass. If you want to create a hedge, you should calculate about 2.5 plants per meter, which corresponds to a planting distance of 40 cm. In individual positions, the Cornelian cherry occupies a space of around 4 to 5 m wide over the years, which is why it should be kept at least 2 m away from neighboring plants.

First, a large planting hole is dug and the cornel and root ball are placed in it. Mix the excavated earth with ripe compost or a predominantly organic long-term fertilizer such as ours to ensure a good supply of nutrients Plantura universal fertilizer in organic quality. Since the nutrients contained in the granules such as potassium, nitrogen and phosphorus only slowly over several Are released over the month, they support the cornel in the growth phase gently and consistent. Now fill the planting hole around the wood again and lightly press the soil. Then water thoroughly once to wash substrate to the roots and create a connection to the soil. In the spring you should also model a watering ring out of soil in order to be able to water abundantly and effectively.

Tip: The cornel cherry is only suitable as a container plant when it is young when it is not very tall. So that the roots can develop well, the plant needs a lot of space underground and should only be planted in a correspondingly large pot and repositioned annually. In addition, the pots must be protected from frost over the winter, as there is a risk in the pot that the root ball and soil will freeze through and be seriously damaged.

Cornelian cherry plants at a glance:

• Sunny to partially shaded location in a protected location
• Preferred pH: 7.4 and higher
• Best planting time: October to mid-November
• Planting distance for hedges: approx. 40 cm
• Plant spacing for single planting: at least 2 m to neighboring plants
• Dig a large hole and place the cornel cherry in it
• Mix excavated earth with slow release fertilizer and distribute it around the plant
• Press the soil down and water it thoroughly
• When planting in spring, model a casting ring
• Due to the limited space, planting in pots is only possible with young Cornelian cherries

The most important maintenance measures

As a native wild wood, the Cornelian cherry is naturally very easy to care for, but it too benefits from a few horticultural attentions. We have compiled the most important measures for caring for Cornelian cherries for you.

Water and fertilize

Cornelian cherries can withstand dry periods well, but they generally prefer soils that never dry out completely and that store some moisture even in midsummer. In the right location, only freshly planted Cornelian cherry bushes need to be watered, as the root system has yet to develop properly here. Established plants supply themselves with water after two to three years at the latest. For the cornel cherry, maintenance fertilization once a year in spring at the time of the leaves appear is sufficient. Work on the surface with some ripe compost or slow release fertilizer on an organic basis, such as ours Plantura organic universal fertilizeraround the plant. Microorganisms in the soil break down the granulate over time and release nutrients available to plants.

Cut the cornel

Cornelian cherries do not necessarily have to be cut if there is enough space. The flowers develop on the annual wood. Therefore you have to expect a crop failure with a strong cut. However, the plants themselves tolerate pruning measures such as thinning out well, and they can also Large shrubs can also be limited in height and width by regular pruning, which occurs in hedges Advantage is. You can even recover from the hive with a radical pruning and form new shoots. The Cornelian cherry itself is so cut compatible that it can be grown as a topiary in a spherical shape, as a bonsai or trellis. However, due to the frequent cut, it bears less and significantly less fruit.

Cornelian cherry: diseases and pests

The Cornelian cherry is hardly attacked by pests, individual leaves are mined by caterpillars. Brown spots are often found on the leaves of the cornel and other dogwood that are caused by fungi such as Septoria or bacteria like Pseudomonas syringae which, however, rarely threaten the plant. Here a clearing cut for better ventilation and the removal of the fallen, diseased leaves provide a remedy. However, on land bordering fields and forests, the risk of game browsing is much higher than infestation with pathogens.

Propagate Cornelian cherry

The wild form of the cornel can be propagated through its seeds. However, this has a very long and stable dormancy and it is also about Cold germwhich usually only germinate after two winters. For the sake of simplicity, they are grown outdoors. In late autumn, dig the seeds you have bought or harvested yourself about 3 to 5 cm deep in the bed, mark them the spot and wait for the first seedlings to emerge from the ground next spring at the earliest look.

A much faster method of propagation, also for varieties, is the rooting of cuttings. Here you cut 10 to 15 cm long shoot cuttings from the still soft, straight shoot in early summer after the flowering time of the Cornelian cherry only lignified new shoots of the same year and put them deep in moistened potting soil, half of which is mixed with sand became. Our Plantura herb & seed compost is ideal for this because it is low in nutrient salts, which would remove urgently needed water from the freshly cut cuttings. At the same time, the high compost content and the resulting water storage offer a good environment for root formation. The cuttings should be warm, light and moist for the next two to three weeks, ideally 15 to 20 ° C and a translucent cover that maintains a high level of humidity. Roots form quickly and the cuttings can be moved to more nutrient-rich soil after about four weeks or planted out in autumn. Adult plants also often form root shoots that can be dug up and transplanted.

Is the Cornelian cherry poisonous?

The Cornelian cherry is completely harmless to humans, it was cultivated and harvested as an important fruit tree for a long time. After all, their fruits were an important source of vitamins in the cold season. Cornelian cherries are neither poisonous nor dangerous for pets such as cats or dogs. Digestive problems can only arise if you swallow too much of the fruit together with the stone.

Cornelian cherry: harvest and use

The cornel harvest season begins in mid-August. The exact time depends on the variety. As soon as the fruits are ripe, the harvest time lasts about 1-2 weeks. Fully ripe fruits usually fall off the bush. Therefore, a fine-meshed net is stretched under the plants. Shaking it off vigorously ensures that even more, almost fully ripe fruits fall down and more can be harvested at once. This saves you the hassle of picking up and washing fruits lying on the ground. Cornelian cherries that are already soft should be processed immediately or, alternatively, frozen. Fruits that are not yet fully ripe can be stored in a cool place for a maximum of ten days.
Only fully ripe fruits taste pleasantly sweet and sour and take on a very soft consistency. Fruits that are too unripe, on the other hand, tend to be hard and extremely acidic. Pink-colored, semi-ripe Cornelian cherries ripen well, which can be particularly encouraged by warmth.

Ripe cornel cherries are suitable as a healthy snack as they have a very high vitamin C content of 70 to 125 mg per 100 g. For some, they taste fresh but too sour, but various processing methods can be used to make cornel cherry juices, syrups or the “Dernovka” liqueur, which is well known in Russia. In addition, the “Dirdl schnapps”, which is popular in Austria, is placed in a strong liquor. Delicious cornel cherry jams and jelly are made when the fruit is boiled down and then passed through a sieve to remove the stones. Similar to Cranberries (Vaccinium vitis-idaea) the cornel goes very well with game dishes in the form of sauces or compotes. To preserve the wild fruit for several years, you should dry, candy or freeze the cornel cherries. Even the half-ripe, green fruits can be pitted as "false olives" and enjoyed in wine vinegar. In the past, the valuable ingredients and healing properties of cornel cherries were used as home remedies to relieve intestinal inflammation or fever.

Another type of wild fruit that is gaining in importance is the Rock pear (Amelanchier). We show how the decorative small trees and shrubs feel comfortable in your garden and whether the fruits are suitable for consumption.