Dogwood – Few Flowers in 2013

Q: This year (2013) there were not very many white blossoms on any of my dogwoods. They are leafing out as normal. Should I worry about this lack of blossoms?

A: You are not the first (or second or third) gardener to notice this. I’ve looked at the dogwood flowers present and they seem normal, with no evidence of disease. Further, there was no severe drought last year or winter cold. As with many garden occurrences, I think we have to ascribe this one to an effect of Nature, but not one we understand. Fertilizing a dogwood in spring with any landscape fertilizer will result in more leaves, which may help insure more blooms next year.