On Thu, 24 Jul 2003 12:03:19 -0400, wrote:

I planted a red Dogwood (Cornus Florida) this spring. It is now
extremely sad looking, with ugly yellowing leaves with dark blotches.
I planted another one (not very close) this spring that is doing just
fine. Other nearby plants look fine (butterfly bush "Black Knight",
forsythia).

Its possible that its gotten too much water -- we've had an extremely
wet spring and early summer. I see a few mushrooms growing in the
mulch near the base. That doesn't seem like a good thing. Is that
bad?

Assuming it is getting too much moisture, what can be done? I
thought I planted it in a spot that would drain well -- there's a
small slope -- but maybe not. Is moving it or replanting an option
at this point? Is there any other problem that it could be having?

The problem, particularly for young dogwoods, is not enough moisture.
They have relatively shallow roots, so when the topsoil dries out, so
do their roots. I would Google on "dogwood disease" and see if you can
match any photos. Or "dogwood cultivation" and look for matching
symptoms. I can offer slight encouragement in that my (big, old)
dogwood suffered *something* 2-3 years ago which blighted the leaves
and severely reduced the following year's bloom, but it seems to have
recovered on its own. There are a few dead twigs yet to fall, but it's
lookin' good now (knock wood). I just read an article that said
some dogwood problems are due to advice not to plant in full sun, so
that they are often planted beneath other trees where rain
'runoff/drip down' encourges fungal diseases. Good luck. They are my
very favorite trees -- beautiful in every season.