Rusty Dogwood
 

Greetings one and all

hope you had a good summer - here comes the rain (at last)

I bought 3 dog-wood plants from RHS-Wisley earlier and planted them out.
All displayed signs of rust within weeks. I've been cuttting out the
infected areas all year. One gave up some weeks back, another now looks
sick beyond redemption and the third is just about hanging on. Any clues as
to the cause? and more importanly a suggested treatment? or should I give
up and try again with new stock?

Nothing else in the bed is affected.

Thanks
--
William Tasso - http://williamtasso.com

Rusty Dogwood
 

Any clues as
to the cause? and more importanly a suggested treatment? or should I give
up and try again with new stock?

Nothing else in the bed is affected.

Thanks
--
William Tasso - http://williamtasso.com

Cause of many infestations on plants is imbalance/deficiency of something
within the plant itself. The suggested remedy for rust infestation is the use
of a high potassium fertiliser (which probably means that a deficiency of
potassium within plants is a contributing factor with regard to rust). Remove
the leaves that are affected. Spray with a systemic fungicide.

Sometimes when I think a plant is possibly too 'ill' to make a recovery, I take
a cutting, or do something similar to ensure I don't actually 'lose' the plant
all together, though I may actually lose the 'original' plant. I hope that
makes sense. I'd suggest removing the odd stem from each of your Cornus and
removing all leaves, wash in a detergent, then place in a clean container
filled with a reasonable amount of water. Cornus like lots of water and often
root when left in water, even when you don't want them too.

Hope this helps.

Dave.