Is this the slowest growing tree in the world…..

Hi everyone,

About 3 years ago we bought a Cornus Florida Rainbow tree and planted it. I can’t remember how big it was when we bought it but I think it was very small. I’m trying to find a photo. We have acidic soil and it’s in a full sun location and since planting it appears to be very happy in terms of displaying beautiful flowers and bracts each year.

However it appears to be growing very slowly, is this normal? Having said this there does seem to be some growth this year and maybe I can’t remember just how small it was when we got it.

Any advice is very welcome.

Ed

 

I find that some shrubs take 3, 4, 5 years to establish and start to grow well, but my garden is on a hillside with relatively shallow soil in many places.
I think the slowest growing trees are those in pretty tough places to grow for example the Bristlecone Pines and some of the arctic willows.

 

Cornus are quite slow growing until they get established. According to the RHS, this variety is a compact one which grows to a height of 2.5m to 4m within 5 to 10 years. You could encourage growth by clearing the area around the shrub and applying a mulch of organic matter to help retain moisture. I often give young shrubs a few handfuls of Blood Fish and Bone in spring to give them a boost. This may help if your soil is sandy or needs improving like mine.

 

Yes I must admit it does seem to be accelerating now. I have found the photo from when I planted it. I will post it tomorrow. It seems fairly happy there and always gives a good display albeit a compact one!

 

I agree with the others @machtucker . Shrubs and trees can take anything from a year to 3 or 4, depending on all sorts of things, and even plants of the same size, going into the same sort of soil and site can vary. The size on planting can also have an effect, as well as time of planting. A small shrub will take several years to be of an y size at all, so it's probably not that far behind where it should be. For many of them, it's not till they're around that 5 year age that they really take off, hence the info saying 'after 5 to 10 years'.

The surrounding soil doesn't look too hospitable though - if you tidy that and give it a good mulch, [compost, leaf mould or similar] that will help. You can do that as often as you want. It's always a good idea to do that in the first year or two after planting, as any competition from other plants or weeds has an effect, and it will also benefit the soil structure.

 

One of the things I've found is that younger shrubs establish better than older ones, as well as often being cheaper.

 

Yes - I agree @NigelJ . It's always more difficult to get a mature shrub properly established, unless everything is perfect for it. Small ones can often be easier, especially if they're good specimens to start with, and they have a good site.
I currently have a Hebe which has been grown from a seedling from one that I already had. It's grown away very well, and is now about 60 to 70 cms, and has also survived the variations in weather we get here that often means they don't manage winters well. I originally had 3 the same. Lost two, and half of another, so it was nice to have this one.