No tree native to the northern part of the United States makes a better specimen than the common flowering dogwood found wild over the entire eastern part of the country.
The pink- or red-flowered form, rare in nature, is tops in colorful beauty when it is in flower. Horticulturists propagate it by budding and grafting.
Pink-Flowered Dogwood’s Story
The story goes that one of the plants was found by a canny nurseryman along Wissahickon Creek in Philadelphia.
He watched it carefully, took propagating wood when he could, and finally destroyed the original plant so that no other horticulturalists could obtain stock.
Whether or not this is a true story, today, almost every horticulturalist in the East offers pink-flowered dogwood.
Not Quite As Hardy
And fortunately, too, for it is one of our most beautiful flowering trees. But, unfortunately, the pink dogwood is not quite as hardy as the white-flowered species.
In New England, several winters have injured it with cold while the species has remained unscathed. Happily, gardeners in the South do not have to worry about this.
Budded Or Grafted White-Flowered Forms
However, every owner of a pink dogwood should keep in mind the fact that this variety is budded or grafted on the white-flowered form, which means that all suckers or shoots
below the graft union should be continually removed.
If not, the white-flowered understock will take all the nourishment from the roots, and the pink-flowered upper part may be killed.
If there is a severe freeze with temperatures well below zero while the plants are young, it may mean that the top will be injured, so the plant sprouts from the base, below the graft union, thus eventually resulting in a white-flowered plant.
Color Variations Of Flowers
There is much discussion about the variation in the depth of the color of these flowers, which may vary from year to year.
Just what the reason is for this, I do not know. However, in this connection, it is interesting to note that a few of our Sargent cherries also appear to have lighter colors in some years than others.
Flowering dogwoods, either pink or white, are of ornamental interest every season of the year, especially on the small property.
In the spring, their flowers are important attractions. In the summer, their glossy, dark-green foliage is a little troubled with insect or disease pests.
Wonderful Foliage
In early fall, the fruits color a brilliant red while the leaves are still green, making a wonderful red-green color combination.
Then the foliage turns a bright scarlet; flowering dogwood is one of the best deciduous trees for this gay color.
After the leaves and fruit have fallen, the horizontal branches make the tree interesting to look upon all winter long.
Anyone who has taken a trip to Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, in the spring will appreciate the beauty of dogwoods at their best.
Hundreds of pink- and white-flowered trees have been planted to make this national shrine a beautiful sanctuary.
Dogwood: Town Planting
Dogwood has also been adopted by various towns planting memorial boulevards, for they are well adapted to such planting and make a wonderful display.
The homeowner can plant dogwood on even a small property, for it seldom grows over 40 feet tall and usually considerably less.
Blossom of Pink Flowering
If there is room for one pink-flowered tree planted in front of two white-flowered ones, the color combination will be appreciated and remembered by everyone who sees it.
The blossoms of pink flowering (logwood are one of spring’s gayest harbingers. They are preserved on Flower Grower’s cover, so you may enjoy them all year.
44659 by Donald Wyman