The lowdown on the dogwood

As many of you know, several years ago the city of Perry adopted the dogwood as its official tree. And what an excellent choice! And since we are in the midst of our annual Dogwood Festival, I thought it would be appropriate to focus our attention on the dogwood with this annual article.

The flowering dogwood (Cornus florida) is undoubtedly the best ornamental of all small trees native to the South and is sometimes called the most beautiful native tree of North America. Its blossom is the state flower of North Carolina and Virginia. It is truly a four-season plant.

In the spring, its blossoms viewed on a rich green carpet of new grass create an unforgettable sight.

In the summer, its foliage creates a deep green luster, which is followed by deep green luster, which is followed by deep red leaves in the fall and bright red clusters of seeds throughout the winter.

The native dogwood is a small bushy tree reaching a height of 15 to 30 feet. Its short trunk has several large, wide spreading branches, which form a dense, rounded crown. Dogwoods are found naturally on moist, rich, well-drained soils near streams and slopes and usually grow in the shade of other hardwoods. That is why it is best not to try to grow them in full sun, even though they may do alright there if planted in deep, fertile soil that retains moisture. In shallow, dry, or rocky soil, it often leaf scorches badly in summer droughts. In heavy shade, it will not bloom.

Deer generally do not browse the leaves of the dogwood. Pruning is seldom necessary except to remove crossing branches. If needed, pruning should be done just after bloom.

Although most people prefer the native white dogwood, there are several varieties from which to choose. Bay Beauty is more tolerant to drought and heat than other varieties and can be planted in full sun with better results than the native dogwood. Cherokee Chief has deep rosy red flowers while Plena has white semi-double flowers. Rubra is the original pink dogwood, and Fragrant Cloud has blossoms, which are slightly scented.

Another dogwood to consider is the Kousa, or Japanese dogwood. It is similar to the native dogwood except that it has pointed flower bracts rather than notched, and it blooms from late April through May after full foliage has been attained.

All dogwoods have the potential to flower. The age at which they begin flowering will depend on genetics and site conditions. Generally, it takes three to five years before the first flowers are produced, then flowering recurs almost every year, with a heavy crop about every other year.

Dogwoods require a well-drained site. When planted in poorly drained areas, dogwoods do not grow well and may not survive.

It is very easy to plant trees too deep. Dogwoods are very shallow-rooted plants, so avoid planting your tree deeper than it grew in the nursery. Regardless of the tree size, research has shown that the planting hole should be 18 inches deep and three feet in diameter.

Unfortunately, in recent years dogwoods have been impacted by what is called dogwood blight, an anthracnose fungus. Symptoms include small spots with purple margins on the leaves and show up first in the lower branches and can spread to the whole tree. Borers often attack trunks and limbs of stressed trees. The disease eventually kills the leaves, and in two to three years, the tree dies.

C. florida has been bred with C. kousa to produce C. rutgerensis, a more disease resistant hybrid, also called Stellar dogwood. Some varieties of this species include Stellar Pink, and white the flowered Aurora, Galaxy, Ruth Ellen, Constellation and Stardust.

The dogwood is a beautiful, noble tree. Enjoy its presence this spring, and especially during the Dogwood Festival!

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