Hello – Thank you for taking my question. I am very sorry not to have pictures. I am wondering if you have seen midwinter fire dogwood (cornus sanguinea) with sooty black tips.
There is a similar photo at this link: https://ask2.extension.org/kb/faq.php?id=318969
To make a long story short, I bought five from a local garden centre last week and after waiting a couple days to plant them, looked at the plants and they all had black tips. I returned them. Flash forward to today: I was visiting the two I bought last year (winter colour was great) and they now have black tips also. I cut all the tips off, 2-3 inches below the soot, and threw them in the garbage/cleaned my pruners with alcohol. Do you know whether this is normal for midwinter fire? Do you think it might be anthracnose? I also bought some Neon Burst dogwood and am worried they might also get sick as my understanding is that everything these days is considered sericea subsp. sericea whether you’re looking at sanguinea, alba, tatarian, etc. I thought they were going to be an “easy” plant for me but I guess not! Thank you.
Thank you for contacting Toronto Master Gardeners.
Dogwoods are such a colourful addition to the winter garden. Cornus sanguinea ‘Midwinter Fire’ is a good choice as its fragrant blooms produce purple fruits eaten by the birds.
There are a number of diseases and pests that impact various Dogwood species. Common problems of dogwoods on the University of Maryland’s website includes photos and detailed descriptions. The black tips you described may be caused by a fungal pathogen resulting in twig and branch canker. An arborist could assist with identifying the type of pathogen. Note that Dogwood Anthracnose is no longer common. A response to a previous question to the Toronto Master Gardener website: Partial dieback of serviceberry and dogwood is a similar question you should reference for more information.
You’ve made a great start re: control measures. Impacted twigs / branches should be pruned back to healthy areas. Cleaning your pruners with alcohol or a sanitized wipe prevents spreading the disease. Ensure you dispose the infected twigs in the garbage – don’t compost. Keep your dogwoods healthy by watering them during dry periods. In the fall, rake and remove dead leaves which may harbor the fungus over the winter.
Continue to closely monitor your dogwoods. Once your shrubs leaf out, keep an eye on the leaves to see if there are any symptoms of disease or pests being present.
Wishing you the best of luck with your dogwoods.