First consideration is, are the dogwoods in your area all dying of anthracnose or whatever the disease is that's killing all the ones in my area. If your locals are healthy, then it'd probably be alright. If it were me, I wouldn't plant pink and white alternately - it would have that checkerboard vinyl tablecloth look. I've seen alternately colored plantings of other plants, and it doesn't look good to my eyes. I'd just pick one color and go with that - you'd get the beautiful drift.
Sherry

Thanks,
don't think dogwoods are having a hard time around here yet. Another idea was to plant three dogwoods (pink) and have shrub plantings around each.

Not all dogwoods are equal when when it comes to susceptibility to disease. Cornus florida has a reputation in some areas as being prone to damage from dogwood anthracnose and powdery mildew, but other species, and certain cultivars of Cornus florida, don't usually have those problems. We should have a Cornus florida that is highly resistant to both dogwood anthracnose AND powdery mildew in a few years. I don't think anything has been released so far, but it's being worked on.

i would hesitate ...

first.. do your research.. and find out if they bloom concurrently ... if they do.. then you might have a week or two show.. and that will be it ...

i have a slew of flowering trees and shrubs.. and what fascinates me.. is that each has its own bloom period ... from early to late spring ...

by varying your selection.. you can get 4 to 8 weeks of showtime ...

for me... it goes something like.. forsythia.. redbud .... spireas ... lilacs.. etc ... its really hard to recall right now in the great white north ... lol ...

by choosing 5 differing plants.. you might get a lot more experience... and pleasure

ken

Alternating pink and white brings up thoughts of regimentation. Nature, for the most part, doesn't act that way. I'd go for a more relaxed approach myself. A subdued border is much preferred, in most cases, over a line in the sand. Mix it up a bit. Look for flow rather than a straight, solid line.
How much space do you have? Usually successful borders are evergreen shrubs or trees.

Mike

Here is a link that might be useful: My garden pics

"...but I also wonder if they might look kinda strange..."

Probably, but not nearly as strange as it would 15 years from now if one of the middle ones dies. Or some disease or pest comes along that kills all of them. Best to diversify as Mike suggested above.

tj

Thanks im thinking of just a couple of pink or white dogwoods with shrubbery planted around. Or maybe mixing in anothet flowering tree. What would fit well with dogwoods to break the monotony? And does pink or white withstand disease better?

There are various choices for Cornus florida which flower pink or white. I say go with one Cornus florida on one side and a Cornus kousa on the other. Perhaps a Cornus 'Eddie's White Wonder' or whatever the cool cultivar is this year on the white end.

In the middle I would Be tempted to go with a Prunus serrulata Kwanzan Flowering Cherry in the middle or a variegated Cornus Florida (Cherokee sunrise, sunset, whichever you prefer). Variegated foliage is like an all summer flower.

Then again an Acer palmatum cultivar would give better variety.

Thanks...
Based upon the above advice and more research, I think my focus should be using the dogwoods as part of focal points. What shrubbery would match well? I've got about 40-50ft of property line to work with.

Azaleas always blend beautifully with dogwoods. The white blooms with the (usually) bright pink azaleas are stunning. The Indican azaleas, like 'Formosa' and 'Pride of Mobile' are common here, but there are many other types.
Sherry

I have attached some pictures of the area to give a clearer picture of my question. The area to the right of the photo is the area that I want to add the dogwoods. Just to give you the tour...i've got two cryptomeria and a little gem in each corner...a couple of scarlet oaks and a gingko.

jpg

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:330065}}

This actually the better shot...i can't figure out how to add multiple pics to the same post. The property line area straight ahead is where I want my dogwood groupings

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:330066}}

Your yard is very open! Where I live, dogwoods are understory trees that don't get very big - here, they do their best with filtered sun, like what you get through tall pine trees. My wooded property has gotten TOO shady though, with the evergreen southern magnolias taking over after the hurricane.
I would imagine that your conditions would be more like Augusta, GA, where my sister lives. The dogwoods grow right out in the open there, and when they're in bloom, it looks like it's snowing dogwood petals - beautiful! The same situation exists in Memphis, TN, where my daughter used to live.
So, I think it would be fine for you to go ahead and plant some dogwoods right out in the open, but you'd know if dogwoods thrive in full sun in your area. If they do, I'd plant an odd number of trees in a somewhat zigzag or staggered pattern, with evergreen shrubbery of some type planted in a natural way underneath, giving you an "island" of plants on that side.
A good substitute for dogwood would be sourwood/Oxydendrum arboreum, but you'd probably have to order it from a native plant nursery. If you're close to Aiken, SC, you could buy some (with an appointment)from Woodlander's, one of the first native plant mail-order nurseries. In my area, sourwoods are understory trees, but I've seen them growing in the open in Tennessee, so they'd probably do well on your property. They bloom much later than dogwoods, though, in May down here.
Like I said previously, Indica azaleas bloom at the same time here as dogwoods and co-ordinate real well, but I'm not sure that Indicas will grow in Zone 7. Other evergreen shrubs that are good possibilities are Camellia sasanqua, fragrant tea olive/Osmanthus fragrans, scarlet firethorn/Pyracantha coccinea, and there are even some evergreen viburnums. Sasanquas bloom in fall, but they have a beautiful shape that makes a good screen or hedge, not rounded like Camellia japonicas.
Nobody here on this forum can tell you what to plant, because the conditions are so different from one area to another.
Good luck!
Sherry

Thanks! Bump for other ideas