Giant dogwood: when and how to prune

Giant dogwood: when to prune it?

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Prune as little as possible. If you must, do it while the tree is dormant, from November to January.

What else to prune in those months? January · November · December

Giant dogwood: how to prune it?

1. Remove only dead, damaged or crossing branches.
2. Keep one central leader; cut out a second leader on a young tree.
3. Do not shorten the horizontal branches: you would lose the tiered shape.
4. To walk under the tree, remove a whole lower tier rather than pieces of branches.
5. On ‘Variegata’, all-green shoots sometimes appear: cut them out at their base.

How much to cut, and how often?

• One pruning period a year: November–January.
• Never remove more than about a quarter of the crown at once. Better a little every year.

What does it mean for wildlife?

• The pruning months fall outside the nesting season (15 March–15 August), so you won’t disturb nesting birds.
• Giant dogwood flowers in May–June, when it attracts bees.
• Prunings can go on a dead hedge or brash pile in a corner of the garden: shelter for hedgehogs, wrens and insects.

Common mistakes

• Leaving a stub or sawing flush with the trunk: cut just outside the branch collar.

Nearby: related pruning guides

• Common dogwood
• Cornelian cherry
• Flowering dogwood
• Red-barked dogwood
• Japanese cornel (Cornus officinalis)
• Pagoda dogwood (Cornus alternifolia)

Plant profile: Giant dogwood · Pruning calendar and basic rules