The height and spread varies depending on the species and its location in the landscape. The spread may be even greater than the height. The true flowers are clustered in the center of these bracts. One of the most appealing features of many dogwoods is the graceful beauty of their tiered, horizontal branching. This is especially true of flowering and kousa dogwoods sited in shade.
Cornelian cherry tends to be multi-stemmed and is formed more like a shrub than a tree.
The flowering dogwood is susceptible to many diseases and insect pests. Some kousa dogwoods are more resistant to these pests than flowering dogwood. Cornelian cherry is generally pest-free. For more information on disease and insect problems on dogwoods, refer to Dogwood Problems , HGIC 2003. While all dogwoods do well in full sun or partial shade, the flowering dogwood prefers partial shade.