Thank you NHBabs. Voles are not an issue, but in one area deer will be, I'll check into that.

Would a single cornus sericea be handsome enough to stand alone near an entry?

The red-twigged dogwoods are really only stars during the winter IMO unless you have one of the variegated ones since fruit and foliage are subtle so it's basically a green blob during the growing season; it's the colored twigs that are of interest once the leaves have fallen. Also, some are quite large, so near an entry you would want one of the smallest selections unless your entry bed is large enough to accommodate the size without it encroaching or overwhelming visitors. In my area it remains healthy (except for the voles) but I've heard other folks mention foliar diseases being an issue - I'd guess different weather and growing conditions, though perhaps some cultivars are more susceptible, IDK.

In most cases bare root nursery stock is no more difficult to establish than pot grown material if planted at the proper time and kept watered for the first few years. What I would be careful of is " 50 for X dollars specials" that seem very inexpensive. These are often little more than rooted cuttings which need growing on in containers or a nursery bed before being planted out. Without this extra care, mortality is likely to be high. The question really isn't bare root vs. container grown vs. field grown balled and burlap, but rather the quality of what you're planting. There are nurseries which supply high quality plants of all three types. There are others which have little quality control and little regard for their customers which ship weak and poorly grown material year after year. Check Dave's Garden/Garden Watchdog for ratings of nurseries.

Is there such a thing as one Cornus sericea? Definitely not in my yard. They like to multiply by tip rooting. I have wild ones in a swamp, and they tend to look good all year, but not showy. The really bright red twig ones are either European or European hybrids. The natives are much more understated. Realize that drought stress is absolutely unknown to my swamp plants. Even this year it is damp down there.

Amelanchier has leaf problems. There may be named selections selected for disease resistance.

Around here, redbuds behave a lot like small Bradford pears - they get so big and then they explode. You don't see big ones, and they do cycle out over time.

Are you working off a conservation sale list?

akamainegrower Thank you for the suggestion. I found the nursery on Dave's extensive list and it had less than a dozen reviews, but all positive. It is a small mostly native almost local nursery.

mad_gallica Thank you for the the info. I will not place the Cornus sericea in an area where it cannot freely do its thing and reproduce. And will stay away from redbuds... I wondered why such a gorgeous tree was so sparse.

have you checked whether your county soil conservation district offers a plant sale .... name your county... we can look it up ...

i dont think you mentioned size ... if under 2 feet ... 2 to 3 years old ... bare root stock is easier to deal with ... than pots.. and wildly less expensive ...

timing is imperative ... not a middle of the summer thing ... and with a large project.. watering is key ... and that is one reason timing makes it more forgiving ...

and when you plant 50 of anything.. expect a loss rate ...

what is your soil type ...

be nice to know where you are... as z6 is rather divergent ... natives might be more forgiving ... hence your local county dist office ...

look up how foresters replant wood plantations.. for how easy this can be ... find out what a dibble is... and how to plant that way ...

and finally.. i would never plant one type of anything ... if that one special plague comes along.. then you lose them all .. potentially ...

ken

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUzeruQT8xE

I've grown Cercis from bare root with no problems. I ordered some interesting cultivars mail-order and bare root was the only way to get them.

I have Cornus sericea and found that it does, as mad gallica said, spread by tip rooting. It is "supposed" to be pruned heavily in spring to get lots of the new growth, which is red in the winter (reddish, anyway), but I let it go, and it gets to about, oh, 8 feet by 8 feet, more or less. I like it myself. I got it container-grown, and it has done very well; I think that it would be just fine bare root.

Amelanchier is pretty forgiving, so I would guess that bare root would be good.

My neighbor has tried Cercis twice and had it die twice; it seems fussy, so I don't know how bare root would do.

ken_adrian Thank you for the video, love the dibble bar. I am in Lehigh County PA

I haven't had issues with Cercis falling apart due to weather, either when I lived in south-central OH or here. My current tree, a hardy strain from Bailey's, has been in the ground perhaps 10 years and was probably 6', 2" caliper when planted and has more than doubled in size. I know of other areas in NH where they are planted as well without problems to this point, but they aren't native here. I've heard others say that it's short-lived, especially when compared to other trees, but mine has survived wind and ice and heavy snow that damaged or destroyed other trees (Cornus kousa, ornamental pears, lilacs, etc.) without even losing branches. The ones I see regularly at work are similar. So my thought is that if you like them, plant some to see how they do, keeping in mind that they won't be as long-lived as other trees. I love the early pop of color along the edge of a grove of trees, and the heart-shaped leaves have a lovely texture that bead up water after rain and turn a clear yellow in fall.

Thank you all for your advice, I learned a lot. For this project I am going with the cornus sericea, redosier dogwood 2-3 ft. Will keep the others in mind for the future. I will not try to force them into a stand alone position near an entryway. Thanks again

Native Cornus stolonifera here are very bright red-twigged, not understated at all, as said above. Must be regional difference-the red-twigged dogwoods here are among the showiest possible of winter plants. Agree that volunteers are numerous-we use this fact purposely in stormwater sites where this shrub is often welcome.

I am hoping these do the same!

Hey, Ken. I like the dibble bar method for mass planting. I've never seen that before.