Growing the Flowering Dogwood

            Mature Height: 15-20 feet      Flowering Time: Late April – Early May

                        Flowers: White, Pink, or Red               Fruit: Red, in the Fall

 The Dogwood is most commonly found growing under the canopy of larger trees of a forest, in a well drained but fertile soil. Following are some tips for planting that will help you create a favorable atmosphere for your Dogwood tree.

1.   Plant a tree so it is shaded from the hot afternoon sun when possible.

2.   Never plant in wet areas!

3.   Dig the hole 1 ˝ to 2 times wider than the root ball.

4.   Use a loose organic soil:

• 50% organic material (˝ of this should be sphagnum peat moss, the other ˝ should be well-rotted manure of compost.)

• 50% existing soil. 

5.   When placing the plat in the hole be sure the top of the ball is approximately 1 to 3” higher than the existing lawn surface.

6.   Add a couple of inches of the soil to the hole and straighten the tree. Leave the burlap of the ball; it will decompose. Cute any twine that is wrapped around the trunk. Continue filling the hole with the prepared soil (cover the top of the call with no more than 1 inch of soil – see diagram.) Form a “saucer-like” basin around the perimeter of the hole – this will hold water.

7.   Water the plant slowly and thoroughly! (Rule-of-Thumb: for every foot of plant height, allow the water to trickle on the root ball for every 6 minutes.) Water every 7 to 10 days thru-out the first growing season. Use “Fertilome” Root Stimulator at the time of planting and then at every other watering. The root stimulator at the time of planting and then at every other every other watering. The root stimulator contains a rooting hormone; fertilizer and a soil penetrate all of which aid in reducing transplant shock. Remember that dogwoods like a moist, well-drained soil, but they cannot tolerate soggy wet soil.

8.   Mulch the soil with pine needles, or oak leaves.  Apply the mulch 2-3” deep.  Mulching keeps the soil moist near the surface, where dogwood roots are most active.

9.   The dogwood borer is the most destructive pest of the dogwood.  Damage is done under the bark on the trunk and at the base of older branches by white to cream colored larvae with reddish-brown head.  The full-grown larvae are about 1” long. Larvae find an opening in the bark in which they can enter.  Once inside they are well protected and begin feeding.  The tree will die whenever one or more of the larvae eats completely around the trunk and blocks the flow of foods from the treetop to the roots.  Insecticides can be used on the lower branches and the trunk to kill new hatched larvae.  Use the insecticide Diazinon for control.  Spray once in mid-May and again in mid-June.