I have a Cornus florida 'Cherokee Brave' that started out fine in my mother's yard then experienced severe freeze damage (around '10) in which about half of the foliage died. I cut it back to the healthy portions but she thought it so ugly in that state that she tossed it. Of course I brought it home with me. The entire canopy died after the transplant but new growth has started up from the base, which leads me to wonder if this particular variety is normally grafted? It originally came from Rare Find, so would have been (IMO) a well grown quality tree. Enclosed are photos of how it is doing now. Of course when it is large enough to flower again I will know for sure, but better to know earlier so I can replace it if it is going to be something too... generic. Not trying to be a tree snob, but space is not unlimited and this is a fairly prime spot. Thank you for any thoughts!
I would guess it is understock. My understanding is that budding is often used with dogwoods, not grafting. Still, same principle applies to growth from the base.
Flowering Dogwoods can be grafted or budded. Which propagation process is best for us ultimately depends on what we want from our technique. More and more people are budding their trees. Nurseries, that want their trees to bloom sooner than their budded trees will, still graft them. Below is link to a very good article on propagation that can be applied to Dogwoods. Grafting and Budding Nursery Crop Plants | NC State University
I forgot to mention that Cherokee Brave can also be propagated in select nurseries by rooted cuttings. I think this is what you were really hoping to know with your original question. Jim
