How to Clone Dogwood

Dogwoods (Cornus spp.) are flowering trees widely used as ornamental plantings in landscape for their spring blooming flowers in white and shades of pink. These deciduous trees, which grow to mature heights of up to 40 feet, provide bright fall color with red and yellow foliage shades. Dogwood flowers are followed by red fruit that invites birds. You can start a dogwood tree with softwood cuttings that are taken just after flowering is over, cites Lewis Hill in "Secrets of Plant Propagation," to create an exact replica of the parent plant.

Small pot
Garden soil
Vermiculite
Rooting hormone
Plastic cup
Sharp scissors

Instructions

- 1
  Fill a small pot with good quality garden soil. Add some vermiculite or perlite to the soil to improve moisture retention and reduce possible soil compaction.
- 2
  Pour about an inch of the rooting hormone into the plastic cup.
- 3
  Use a sharp scissors to take 4- to 8-inch-long sections of softwood stems, measuring from the stem tip. Make sure that there are at least two leaf nodes on each section. Cut the base at a 45-degree angle and leave the top section of the cuttings straight.
- 4
  Dip the base of each cutting into the rooting hormone and plant it about 2 inches deep into the planting medium. The use of rooting hormone is not necessary, but is recommended as it greatly helps with the rooting process.
- 5
  Place the pot in a shaded, cool area. You can leave your cuttings outside, but provide protection against freezing temperature and high wind.
- 6
  Let cuttings get well-established through the first growing season before them moving to a permanent spot in the garden.

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