Cornus Florida is the native dogwood. For any of a small number of reasons the species is generally in decline right now. I have some which appear fine, I think whatever ailments are combining against it are more of a problem in the East. IMO nothing beats it for a small ornamental tree. Spring flowers, GREAT GREAT fall color, and it is polite. Cornus Kousa is an Asian dogwood. Much like Japanese Maples and Dawn Redwoods it is polite and generally welcome in North America. IMO it is almost equal to our native dogwood ornamentally and may be a safer choice in the long run. For nothing but variety sake perhaps go with one. Eastern Redbud is a bit more of a toddler. Grows faster, flowers nicely, seeds freely, minimal fall color. Like a toddler it usually gets a pass on being somewhat free seeding. I even smile every time I pull one of its heart shaped leaf seedlings out of a crevace. They are not the longest lived fellas but they also generally don't get big enough to be a pain to remove and hey, you'll always have a few new ones to try n transplant! Franklin tree is an interesting tempermental fellow. Acer griseum - Paperbark maple, is a trending but non-native favorite. Here is a link that might be useful: Uconn.edu paperbark maple link

Pat, There are actually different species of dogwood that are native to Tennessee, but Cornus florida is the most common, so I will assume that that is the species you are concerned with. Since that species is particularly suseptible to anthracnose, pruning may be more of an issue than with more resistant species. Dead, diseased, and rubbing branches should be removed at your earliest convenience, no matter the time of year. Additional pruning may be done in later winter or very early spring. Pruning in dryer times/conditions may be beneficial for reduction in anthracnose exposure. I've seen it recommended that you wait until warmer/drier weather (maybe late spring) to reduce the anthracnose disease pressure. Disinfecting of pruning tools, with spray Lysol or alcohol, and good garden sanitation practices may also help reduce disease exposure/spread.

According to the "green book" (Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas by Radford, Ahles, and Bell) there are a couple of native dogwoods that might have red twigs: "Cornus amomum: Spreading shrub...young branches green to dark red, pith brown...Marshes, swamp forests, and alluvial woods." "Cornus stricta: Shrub to 3 meters tall, twigs red to gray, pith white...stream banks, alluvial woods, and swamp forests" C. amomum is primarily in the piedmont and mountains, while C. stricta is primarily on the coastal plain. Their ranges seem to intersect around Cheraw. Perhaps you should break a twig and look at the color of the pith.

RE: Raspberry x Blackberry hybrids clip this post email this post what is this? see most clipped and recent clippings * Posted by farmfreedom (My Page) on Tue, Dec 15, 09 at 14:31 Yes you can cross: raspberries , blackberries , mulberries , wineberries ,dewberries , tayberries , boisenberries ,loganberries , salmonberries ,black caps, can all crossbreed . There is even a "white blackberry" developed by Luther Burbank The Nothernmost most cold resistant fruits in the world are berries. We should be using the most cold resistant fruits in the world to extend the range of all berries that they can crossbreed with . o RE: Raspberry x Blacberry hybrids clip this post email this post what is this? see most clipped and recent clippings * Posted by henry_kuska z5 OH (kuska@neo.rr.com) on Thu, Dec 17, 09 at 14:34 See: http://www.rosehybridizers.org/forum/message.php?topid=2986 for additional "possibilities". Here is a link that might be useful: link for above o RE: Raspberry x Blacberry hybrids clip this post email this post what is this? see most clipped and recent clippings * Posted by tugbrethil Sunset 13, USDA 9 (My Page) on Sat, Jan 16, 10 at 1:27 Wait a minute, farmfreedom! All of the brambles (blackberries, raspberries, etc.) are members of the rose family (Rosaceae), while mulberries are members of the Moraceae, along with figs and the rare succulent Dorstenia. There is virtually no structural similarity between the families: are you sure that mulberries and blackberries will hybridize? Kevin : ) o RE: Raspberry x Blacberry hybrids clip this post email this post what is this? see most clipped and recent clippings * Posted by farmfreedom (My Page) on Mon, Feb 1, 10 at 16:30 I believe if you look up the "TAY berry " or the "Logan berry " you will find that that is the cross breed. Also If this was not true How Did Luther Burbank develop the " White Blackberry " . He is also said to Have crossed Strawberries and Blackberries which I would like to see if anyone has a picture . The Nothernmost most cold resistant fruits in the world are berries. We should be using the most cold resistant fruits in the world to extend the range of all berries that they can crossbreed with . 1. Will native strawberries (F. vesca or F. virginiana) cross-pollinate (freely, open-pollinate) with F. ananassa or even F. moschata? I know that half of the gene-pool comprising F. ananassa is F. virginiana, but I'm not sure if this was 'forced' under controlled conditions not present under normal circumstances - just like when you force American persimmon (var. virginiana only) to hybridize with D. kaki (with much effort)? With strawberries it depends on if they are diploid, triploid, quadriploid, etc. 2.Native plums (P. angustifolia; P. americana; P. maritima; P. alleghaniensis; P. pumilla var. besseyi) with European plum (P. domestica) or with the Asian plums (including P. tomentosa). Someone said the natives will not hybridize with the European species but will with (?all)Asian species. Plums,beach plums, apriocots, peaches (including nectarines), almonds and I believe sand cherries can all cross breed with each other , but not with real cherries . 3. The wild native mints (or plants in the mint family) with the Eurasian mint types. 4. The native garlic spp. with the Eurasian garlic spp. garlic can cross with onions( shallots) and other garlic but neither can cross with leaks. 5. Are there natural native crab apple x European apple hyrbids? Yes 6. Other then the supposed Amelanchier canadensis x A. laevis alleged hybrid resulting in A. x grandifolia, will the various Amelanchier spp. hybridize with one another - i.e. A. alnifolia, A. canadensis, A. humilis, etc. with one another? 7. Will the various hickories hybridize with one another, such as pecan x shagbark x shellbark, or are these either extremely rare hybridizations or ones requiring human intervention? Luther Burbank crossed them and crossed the heart nut and all the walnuts . he was trying to cross the walnut with the pecan when he died. 8. Will the various native plums hybridize with one another? - I think several will with A. americana, but not sure if those that would will hybridize with one another. Probably 9. Will native currants and gooseberries hybridize with their European counterparts? And will native currants/gooseberries hybridize freely among themselves? currants X gooseberries are called jostaberries 10. Will native raspberries and blackberries from the north east hybridize with those (Rubus) from the western states? Same question for native blueberries/huckleberries from the east and western coast? Why not ?