How to Grow Dogwood Trees©

By: Arlene Wright Correll

The woods surrounding our property are becoming alive with dogwood trees and as I drive into the village in early April I can just see their blossoms starting to break open on the lower layers. Quickly the village inhabitantís yards will burst forth with those creamy white or pink bracts that have their distinct layering of blossoms.

There are many varieties of the White bract dogwoods and they include the Barton, Cherokee Daybreak, Cherokee Princess, Cloud 9, Bay Beauty, Weaverís White, Plena, Wetchís Bay Beauty and Welchii.

I, personally, am drawn to the Pink/Red bracts which include Cherokee Chief, Cherokee Sunset, American Beauty Red, Junior Miss and Stokes Pink.

Donít plant your Dogwood in a poorly drained location as they really need good soil drainage and protection from drought. Donít plant them in dense shade as your Dogwood tree will result in poor flowering, but do consider that dogwoods should be planted in association with larger trees that will provide moderate shade for you Dogwood. No trees? Consider putting it in the shade of a large building, but remember the Dogwood needs some sun also.

You can start Dogwood trees from seeds that are collected in the fall, but again that is a long process for someone as old as I am, so I take myself back to my favorite garden center, buy one in a gallon bucket or a balled and bur lapped tree for about $15.00 to $25.00 and bring it back home to plant it since container grown plants can be planted anytime providing you water them very carefully. You can plant bare root Dogwood trees from November to March when they are dormant.

Donít create slow growth problems for you Dogwood tree by having poor soil preparation. You will need a large, wide hole dug prior to planting and all the soil you remove should be placed on a tarp or some kind of large piece of plastic where you can break it up or otherwise work it over breaking all the clods and removing any and all stones or other debris. When you place the root ball into the hole make sure the top of the root ball is level with the soil surface and then fill the hole up with the same soil you took out of it. Remember to tamp down with your hands to displace any air pockets around the root ball. Avoid placing any organic matter in the planting hole as an amendment, rather place it on top as mulch after you have completed filling in the hole. This process is a must for people like me that live in an area with compacted clay soil!

I like to stake any trees that are 4 feet tall or taller and I simply drive some wooden notched pegs or old tent pegs in 3 spaces around the tree and loop some old wash line rope to the tree and down to the stakes. This insures a good straight tree and after about 3 years I remove them. I also keep old watering hoses and cut them up into 6 to 12 inch lengths as these are great to run my rope or wire through and use that hose covered part of the rope or wire as the part I put around the tree trunk, thus insuring that I am putting less stress or damage to my tree trunk.

A good thing to remember is to not bump your Dogwood tree with your lawn mower as it will invite an invasion of dogwood borers.

For the first two years you need to make sure your newly planted Dogwood gets adequate water or it will simply be a waste of time and money since it will not survive. Once or twice weekly watering through dry periods is a must. However, donít over water or you will cause root rot. I like to mulch a wide ring around newly planted Dogwood trees to help maintain a moist ground.

Do not over fertilize. When you use a good organic fertilizer spread about a ª cup around the drip line for newly planted Dogwoods in March and again in July.

I often feel those of us who are optimists are the tree planters of the world. There rarely is instant gratification such as one will find with annuals, but you will look up one day and see those lovely Dogwood trees in full bloom and you will wonder where the time went!

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To see Arleneís Gardens and to read her gardening diaries or click on Arleneís Books where you can download or buy her gardening & cook books. Arlene says, “All my royalties from the sale of my books go to the St. Jude Childrenís Research Hospital and I thank you for visiting my site.”

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