Diseased Dogwood Tree - Ask Extension
Hello.
There is a dogwood tree in my front yard. It has slowly shown decline the past 3 years since we acquired our home. The leaves on the entire pla...
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Diseased Dogwood Tree #645892
Asked June 04, 2020, 12:21 PM EDT
Hello.
There is a dogwood tree in my front yard. It has slowly shown decline the past 3 years since we acquired our home. The leaves on the entire plant look sickly, and there is some sort of greenish blue lichen growing on it's branches.
It flowers in spring, but the flowers look tired and sickly, too, and don't last that long on the tree. Is there anything I could do now to help it? Thank you!
Prince George's County Maryland
Expert Response
Your dogwood is definitely stressed and struggling. There could be multiple reasons for this, including how sunny and dry the area is. These are native understory, woodland edge trees where it is more cool and moist.
The spots on the leaves is a common leaf spot disease called Elsinoe. It tends to be worse during wet springs like we've had. There is nothing you need to do about it.
You could consider replacing the tree, but it may be worth it to you to try to give it a lift and see if you can get it looking/feeling better.
We suggest starting with a soil test. They don't take long and will give you an idea of what might be added to improve the soil for this acid-loving tree.
Here is our soil testing information, including the list of regional labs that can complete the analysis for you:https://extension.umd.edu/hgic/topics/soil-testing
Let them know you are growing a dogwood. Last we checked, U. of Delaware was in the office and operating.
In the meantime (after you take your samples) you could give your tree a quick dose of Nitrogen and see if it greens up a bit.
If we don't get about an inch of rain a week, (you can put out an empty tuna can to measure) you should give the tree a slow, long drink.
Christine
The spots on the leaves is a common leaf spot disease called Elsinoe. It tends to be worse during wet springs like we've had. There is nothing you need to do about it.
You could consider replacing the tree, but it may be worth it to you to try to give it a lift and see if you can get it looking/feeling better.
We suggest starting with a soil test. They don't take long and will give you an idea of what might be added to improve the soil for this acid-loving tree.
Here is our soil testing information, including the list of regional labs that can complete the analysis for you:https://extension.umd.edu/hgic/topics/soil-testing
Let them know you are growing a dogwood. Last we checked, U. of Delaware was in the office and operating.
In the meantime (after you take your samples) you could give your tree a quick dose of Nitrogen and see if it greens up a bit.
If we don't get about an inch of rain a week, (you can put out an empty tuna can to measure) you should give the tree a slow, long drink.
Christine
