grey dogwood will survive nuclear holocaust. Mine are dense enough without any pruning. Can't imagine it needing fertilizer.

Thank you. I'll wait to see what happens next year before I decide if I want to cut them back.

Cornus racemosa can also be live staked (drive dormant cut stem into the ground and create a new plant). Easy way to propagate and prune, all at once.

See the report linked below for more on this tactic; treat Cornus racemosa like Cornus amomum.

Here is a link that might be useful: Live staking report by Dr. Richard Bir

The lot next door was bush-hogged about 6 weeks ago, to clear the multiflora rose that overtook it. There were plenty of Cornus racemosa in there as well. They are returning with great vigor, and many more stems! I'll agree with the "nuclear" comment above.

Very interesting information on the live staking.

Newjerseytea- The Catbirds around here are into whatever berry is ripening and if they don't get them, the Mockingbird does. I can only hope that as things mature, there will be enough berries for everyone. I don't have Spicebush yet but plan on it for next spring at the latest (possibly this Fall). The problem is they come unsexed and I want to buy three (wanting one male and two females). I am afraid that I could get all males or all females, thus get no fruit but I have been thinking about it for at least a year and see no way to get sexed plants.

Does yours grow wild or did you have to plant the spicebush like I will ??

Rita, spicebush grows wild around here - as a matter of fact, it's almost a pest.

If you are ever coming to NJ, let me know - I'd be glad to share.

Red osier dogwood berries only on second year branches. So if you hard prune you will have to wait 2 years to get any berries. Not sure about grey dogwood but would imagine it is the same. Something to think about.

Thanks for the offer, newjerseytea, but I just bought some Spicebush yesterday at my favorite East End Long Island Nursery. I knew they had them there as I had spotted the sign for them but hadn't taken a close look at the plants themselves.

So I picked out three as I had wanted and chose ones that had branched into multiple trunks so they have a shrub habit. They had others there that were a single trunk and looked more like trees instead of the shrub look that I wanted. Mine are between 32 and 39 inches tall (I just measured). I do not think they bloomed as yet as I see no signs of such but I can always hope for blooms next Spring.

I have learned that Spicebush bloom early, even before leaf growth. Any thoughts on how big they need to be before blooming? I am assuming that the flowers can be ID to be male or female easily just the same way as those on Winterberry shrubs can.

I just need some luck to have seedlings of both sexes so that I can get berries. I have been thinking of the Spicebushes for quite a while and decided that if I get all one sex then I will just deal with getting more down the road.

Multistemmed spicebush that are 3 feet tall or taller may very well have a few blooms next year. The male and female flowers are a little different, and I think even the buds may be visibly different. Flower buds should be evident by now -- look on the lower ends of the branches.

Three plants give you a pretty good chance of getting a mix of sexes, but if you are unlucky the plants are attractive even without berries. Of my two largest plants, the female is loaded with red berries but has already lost its leaves, but the male is still fully leafed out and the leaves are turning a nice yellow color.

I only had room for three in that one spot I put them so otherwise I would have gone for more. They are already planted and look good. Will look even nicer as they grow. Some of the leaves are turning yellow on them for Fall color but most are still green. Can't see any flower looking buds, they all look like leaf buds to me but I really don't know.

I really noticed the Spicey scent as I was planting them and brushing the leaves.

The leaves are turning a nice golden yelow on the Spicebushes. I like the way they look as they just have that 'woodsey' look them .

I decided I just have to go and get more Spicebush in the Spring.

My spicebush are the number one favorite rabbit food in the winter. They're usually nibbled down to the ground. I planted them almost 5 years ago, I think, and they've never bloomed yet.

Still too early for anything on my Spicebush and Shrub Dogwoods. Should start putting out leaves soon. I have some Silky and Grey Dogwoods over by a sapling May Day tree and some really small sapling Chokecherries. The May Day tree and the chokecherries are leafed out but the shrub dogwoods aren't even thinking of it yet.

I was so thrilled to have spicebush caterpillars last year on my newly planted spicebush but I think the ones that got eaten are dead. Still hoping they'll sprout from the ground or something but the tops are definitely dead. The others are just starting to leaf out. Maybe I should've protected them from caterpillars the first year since they were so small. : (
Elaine - I went out and put little trunk protectors on mine after I read your post about the rabbits back in January. I've had more rabbits than usual this year so it probably saved them. I think they might've been too little to survive being eaten to the ground.

I haven't seen any Spicebush Swallowtails but that is another reason for planting the shrubs. Mine never did flower this year.

I'm somewhat disappointed in the Cornus racemosa this year - it didn't bloom nearly as well as I had hoped. Maybe next year.

I think I've stopped planting things that I have to wait a period of time to come to their full glory. I expect to be in this place only 5 or 6 more years and I don't want to put things in only to have the next owner tear them out without my ever seeing how well they do.

Example, last year, after 4 years, the ligularia finally bloomed. This year, the older serviceberry bloomed finally after 5 years - catbirds ate all the berries a couple of days ago.

Last year, I planted the Cornus r. and a couple of varieties of viburnum. I want to see them blooming and producing before I leave, but I don't want to wait for other things.

So if it don't produce immediately, from now on it ain't gonna get planted.

NJTea, I think you will find the cornus racemosa will do well for you soon. I have tons of it growing wild around here and it blooms after being mowed down to the ground. I even ripped a few suckers up last year in the fall (and I mean I wasn't careful at all). I shoved them up by the house and many of them survived the winter. I moved them a month or so ago and I have quite a few buds on a lot of them. I can't believe it as they had barely any roots with them. I am really happy with how quickly they have settled in.

Vonyon - it was doing fairly well until a couple of nights ago when the deer got to it!

My own stupid fault. A squirrel got into the sunflower chips last week on a rainy day - the entire small (fortunately) garbage can full of seed got wet and had to be dumped. I, unfortunately, dumped it in the yard rather than way outside the fence. The deer came in and that was all, she wrote. Needless to say, EVERYTHING has been sprayed since then.

A couple of the C. racemosa even had blooms this year but now I'm not going to see any berries. I'm hoping that Apchohrs statement above is correct - tht it will survive anything.

I'm pretty certain it will survive. One of the ones that I ripped up and transplanted even has blooms on it now.

The larger of my Grey Dogwoods are way over 6 feet tall by now and the Silky Dogwood next to it bloomed this spring and again this fall.

NJT- I think Musser catalogue meant that as a warning. ;-) hehehe Gray dogwood are pretty sturdy.

Hope to get berries on my grey and silky dogwoods this year.