The very best time to plant flowering dogwood (Cornus florida) is within the late winter or spring earlier than it comes out of dormancy. You may develop dogwood anyplace the temperature doesn’t go under -15°F (-26.1°C). It thrives in moist, fertile soil that’s barely acidic and partial daylight.
The flowering dogwood is native to the jap United States. It’s a flexible, engaging little decorative tree. Its compact dimension makes it very best for small yards in addition to giant estates.
I discover flowering dogwoods superb. Do you know that the big, colourful flowers you see blooming on dogwoods aren’t flowers in any respect? They’re truly leaves, known as bracts, that encompass the small, vague flower within the center.
Check out these fast tips about when to plant dogwood, easy methods to plant it, and the place to plant it.
Listed below are a number of fast tips about when, how, and the place to plant your dogwood tree, so it grows into a beautiful addition to your panorama.
When ought to I plant a dogwood tree?
Plant your flowering dogwood tree earlier than it develops new development. That is often through the late winter or early spring. After all, this additionally is dependent upon the change of seasons the place you reside.
You may inform in case your dogwood is dormant when it doesn’t present any indicators of recent development.
The place ought to I plant a dogwood tree?
Examine your yard for an space with dappled daylight. Dogwoods don’t like direct daylight or sizzling, dry soil.
Additionally, your dogwood tree wants moist, well-drained soil. If in case you have any pure water in your property, like a stream or pond, dogwoods love water. If not, that’s okay. Simply ensure you water your dogwood usually to a depth of three toes.
How do I plant a dogwood tree?
It’s time to get your backyard shovel and dig a gap that’s twice the diameter of the dogwood’s root ball. You wish to dig at the very least 18 inches deep.
Place the foundation ball into the outlet. If the outlet is deeper than the foundation ball, refill the outlet with free soil combined with natural matter, resembling peat moss. Add the combination till it reaches the underside of the foundation ball. You need the foundation ball to sit down barely increased than it grew within the pot.
As soon as it’s in place, tamp down the soil across the root ball to present a agency base on your dogwood. Subsequent, completely water across the base of the tree.
How far aside ought to I plant dogwood bushes?
If you happen to’re planting a couple of flowering dogwood tree, take into accout what their full dimension might be. They could be small now, however they gained’t be in a number of years.
A mature dogwood often grows from 15 toes to 30 toes tall, relying on the species. In addition they develop from 15 toes to 25 toes huge.
When you choose your dogwood tree, test the label to see how huge it’s at maturity. Divide the mature width in half to know the way far aside to house your dogwoods.
Ought to I unfold mulch round my dogwood tree?
Your flowering dogwood will thanks for spreading mulch round its base. It holds in moisture that the tree’s shallow roots want, and it prevents weeds and grass from rising across the base.
Only a observe, if grass grows round your dogwood tree, don’t use a garden mower or grass trimmer across the tree. If you happen to hit the trunk and nick its bark, borers can enter the tree trunk. Use handheld backyard shears to trim across the dogwood tree.
What sort of mulch ought to I exploit round my dogwood tree?
Since dogwoods naturally develop within the wild, utilizing pure mulch supplies, resembling peat moss, oak leaves, and even forest litter works nicely. Because it decays, it feeds your dogwood the vitamins for wholesome development.
If you would like your dogwood to have extra of a landscaped look, you possibly can unfold mulch out of your backyard middle on high of the pure mulch.
Do I have to weed round my dogwood tree?
The mulch ought to forestall most weeds from rising round your dogwood. However, for those who discover weeds bobbing up, pull them out by hand. You wish to keep away from utilizing a hoe due to the dogwood’s shallow root system.
How do I inform how a lot water to present my dogwood tree?
Regular rain showers often present sufficient moisture for established mulched dogwood bushes. If you happen to’re having exceptionally dry climate, water your dogwood each week as a result of the dogwood’s shallow roots dry out rapidly. Ensure to soak the foundation space completely.
If you happen to discover that the leaves are turning gentle inexperienced or really feel dried out, then the tree wants extra water.
Alternatively, if the dogwood leaves are turning grey, drooping, or turning into too giant, your tree is getting an excessive amount of water.
Does a dogwood tree want fertilizer?
For probably the most half, dogwood bushes take in sufficient vitamins from well-drained, moist soil and natural mulch. They not often want fertilizer.
If you happen to assume your dogwood isn’t thriving after transplanting it, you possibly can apply an all-purpose fertilizer to the soil. Indicators of infertile soil are small, scant leaves and brief twig development.
Keep away from spreading fertilizer close to the trunk. As an alternative, unfold it in a band across the tree close to the tip of the department development.
Why would flowering dogwood bushes want pruning?
There are a number of the explanation why you’d prune a flowering dogwood tree. One of many predominant causes is to take away injured, lifeless, diseased, and pest-infested branches.
In case your dogwood wants pruning, do it through the dormant season. This prevents bleeding from the reduce.
Prune your dogwood all the best way again to the crotch of the limb. Deal with any reduce greater than one-half inch in diameter with a tree-wound dressing. This prevents any borers and fungi from invading the dogwood tree.
What are the commonest ailments and coverings for flowering dogwood bushes?
Preserving your dogwood wholesome with correct location, soil, water, mulch, and pruning ought to assist it keep wholesome. However, even the healthiest dogwoods can change into contaminated by ailments and pests.
Listed below are the three most typical ailments and pests in dogwood bushes:
Spot Anthracnose
It is a fungal illness usually seen in dogwoods. It assaults the leaves or bracts first. The illness then strikes on to the brand new development and fruit. This often occurs within the spring. Wet climate and humidity make the fungal development enhance.
The signs seem as tan spots rimmed with purple on the bracts. Finally, the leaves will change into shriveled.
Sadly, this an infection overwinters, surviving from 12 months to 12 months. You should utilize fungicides to assist alleviate the issue. Anthracnose doesn’t trigger deadly harm, however it does weaken the tree.
Powdery Mildew
This fungus infects the floor of the leaves and new development. In case your dogwood has powdery mildew, you’ll see a tremendous, white powder forming on the higher floor of the leaves.
As soon as the powder seems, the leaves change into scorched-looking with lifeless spots and discoloration. The spores journey within the wind and may infect different dogwoods and vegetation.
This fungal illness is devastating to your dogwood tree. If the leaves drop, rake them up as quickly as attainable and destroy them. Additionally, prune all of the contaminated limbs. Thinning any overhanging limbs from different bushes helps with air circulation and may forestall an infection.
To cease the unfold of powdery mildew, apply a fungicide on the first signal of the illness.
Leaf Spots
If you happen to’re experiencing a moist summer season, your dogwood tree may develop leaf spots. The 2 forms of fungi that trigger leaf spots are Cercospora cornicola and Septoria.
These trigger darkish, round spots on the leaves. When the illness turns into extreme, the spots unfold and canopy the complete leaf. These leaves often drop early.
It’s best to clear up any contaminated leaves that drop. Fungicides could assist for those who catch the illness early.
What pests infest dogwood bushes, and what can I do about them?
A lot of the bugs that infest dogwood bushes trigger minor harm. The one time it turns into critical is for those who planted your dogwood beneath opposed circumstances, resembling full solar and never sufficient water.
The next are the commonest bugs that infest dogwood bushes:
Dogwood Borer
You may mistake the grownup dogwood borer (Synanthedon scitula) for a wasp. It’s actually a clearwing moth.
The feminine moth lays her eggs on the bark of the dogwood. The moth larva solely infects the tree if there’s a wound within the bark. As soon as the larva will get beneath the bark of the dogwood, they feast on the internal bark and cambium.
The cambium promotes new development. When this turns into broken, the limbs of the entire tree die. Younger bushes will die inside two seasons.
One of the best ways to stop the larva from boring into your dogwood is to maintain it wholesome. You may take preventative measures by spraying your tree with an insecticide which fights in opposition to borers.
Dogwood Membership-Gall Midge
This small fly (Resseliella clavula), lays eggs in leaf buds. When the larva hatch, they enter the brand new shoot. A protracted club-gall varieties on the stem. When fall arrives, the larvae make holes within the gall to exit. The part of the department past the gall may die.
Spraying with horticultural oil or pesticides may also help management heavy infestations. Additionally, for those who see any galls, prune the department and the gall, then destroy them.
Seedcorn Maggot
The seedcorn maggot (Hylemya platura) is the larva of an grownup fly. If you happen to discover gentle yellow larva with a pointed entrance, then your tree has seedcorn maggots.
These maggots don’t trigger any harm to dogwood bushes, and the life expectancy of the flies is brief. You don’t need to deal with your tree for the seedcorn maggots.
