Susceptibility of Cultivars of Several Dogwood Taxa to Powdery Mildew and Spot Anthracnose

Abstract

Abstract Incidence of powdery mildew (Microsphaera penicillata) and spot anthracnose (Elsinoe corni) was assessed on 37 selections or cultivars of flowering dogwood (Cornus florida), kousa dogwood (C. kousa), hybrid dogwood (C. kousa x florida and C. nuttallii x florida) and giant dogwood (C. controversa). Across all cultivars, the flowering dogwood and C. nuttallii x florida ‘Eddie's White Wonder’ are more susceptible to powdery mildew and spot anthracnose than the kousa, C. kousa x florida hybrids and giant dogwood. Among the cultivars of flowering dogwood screened, ‘Cherokee Brave’, ‘Cherokee Chief’, ‘Welch's Bay Beauty’ and ‘Weaver's White’ were partially to highly resistant to both diseases. With few exceptions, the kousa dogwood and C. kousa x florida hybrids, and giant dogwood suffered very little powdery mildew or spot anthracnose-related damage.