How to Prune Red Twig Dogwood to Make It Spread Out

Spray the blades of your pruning tools with household antiseptic cleaner to remove any disease or fungus spores that might remain on the tools after pruning other plants. Dry the blades with a paper towel.

Cut off a young red-twig dogwood 2 inches from the ground with hand pruners in late winter to early spring of its second year, before buds start to open, cutting 1/4-inch above a bud at a 45-degree angle. New growth starts from the cut, with at least two stems growing from each cut for a wider, bushier plant.

Remove stems down to 1/4 inch above the second bud of the previous year's growth with hand pruners the next year at the same time. Each year, the plant thickens from the point it was cut.

Prune one-third of the plant's stems back to the fourth bud from the ground every spring once the red-twig dogwood is as wide as you would like. Bark darkens to gray once a stem is 3 to 4 years old. Removing one-third of the old growth each year keeps new growth coming for the best color in the stems without leaving a bare space in the garden and allowing you to enjoy the plant's small white flowers, which bloom on old wood.