#Red twig dogwood bush how to#

It’s more that they will grow less strongly and become spindly.Īnother idea to help keep the roots moist is by mulching. Your dogwoods will not die if they’re dry for a week. In other areas watering less often, only in a dry spell, will usually be sufficient. In some areas, where summer rainfall is low, you may need to water once a week. This is one of the reasons for using plenty of garden compost when planting – it holds moisture. In their natural wild homes they grow in soil that tends to be moist in summer so it’s important to replicate that by watering plants regularly when needed. (Image credit: Alamy) Red twig dogwood care tipsĪfter pruning, the next most important thing when looking after your red twig dogwood is ensuring that your plants never suffer from drought in the summer. If you have plenty of space, leave the plant unpruned and, depending on the variety, plants will reach 8-10ft (2.4-3m). In their second year the plants may reach 5-6ft (1.5-1.8m). Pruned in this way, most varieties will reach 3-4ft (90cm-1.2m) by winter.Īnother approach, if you prefer a plant that will stand out in a large garden, is to prune in this way every second year. This will inspire a surge of new spring growth, and it’s this growth that will produce the colorful twigs the following winter. Use pruners to cut the plants down hard, within two or three inches of the base. Make it one of your winter jobs in the garden as late winter, or in early spring when the first shoots are starting to appear, is the best time. To produce the most twigs and the best colored twigs, prune every year or every second year. Pruning shrubs in the right way makes a huge difference to their effectiveness and also governs the size of the plant, and red twig dogwood are no exception. (Image credit: Future) Pruning red twig dogwood In the autumn, dig them up and plant them promptly in your chosen place.Some, perhaps all, will start to shoot in spring showing that they’re rooting. Do nothing more until spring unless conditions are very dry, when watering will be helpful.When the cuttings are in place, use your foot to press down on the soil and close the slit.Insert the cuttings in the slit 6in (15cm) apart, right way up. In a bright corner of the yard, use your garden spade to make a narrow slit in the soil.If the stem is long enough, repeat the process but discard the fine whippy tips. Snip just above a leaf joint about 9in (23cm) from the base to form a cutting. At intervals along the stem you’ll see the pairs of small buds opposite each other where the leaves used to be. Using your best secateurs, cut a few of the stems off near the base of the plant.The best time to start is in late fall, immediately after the leaves have dropped. Once you have one plant of red twig dogwood, it’s not difficult to make more.

#Red twig dogwood bush how to#

(Image credit: Alamy) How to propagate red twig dogwood

Finally, mulching with chipped or shredded bark or other mulch will retain moisture and deter weeds.

Follow our guide to composting if you want to make your own. Mix some garden compost with the soil and use this to fill the space around the roots.Add or remove dirt so that the rootball is just a little below the general soil level. Remove the plant from the pot and stand it in the hole.Use a garden fork to loosen the soil in the base of the hole, add garden compost and mix this with your garden soil.Dig a hole twice the width of the pot in which your dogwood is growing, and 50% deeper than the depth of the pot.This will give it a flying start before you follow the below planting method. Check the dilution rate on the pack, then water the plant well. The day before you plan to plant your new red twig dogwood, fertilize it by adding plant food to a watering can of water. (Image credit: Alamy) How to plant red twig dogwood