Why a weak red twig dogwood shrub needs to be moved
“I have a red twig dogwood shrub I planted at least two years ago in my backyard that tends to be moist and shaded by some adjacent trees. It has only grown to about 3 feet tall and has thin foliage. Should I move it?” — Jorge Phillips, Itasca It would be best to move your red twig dogwood, since it is doing poorly in its current location. Red twig dogwood is a common garden plant and generally an easy and reliable shrub to grow. It also is a fast grower when sited properly.
The biggest problem I can see from your description is the lack of sun and perhaps competition from the roots of the adjacent shade trees. Red twig dogwoods will perform
best in full sun, though they will tolerate partial shade. From my experience, the more shade a red twig dogwood is grown in, the more slowly it will grow
and more sparse and spindly its growth will be.
The description you provided of your shrub suggests that the shade is too dense in its current location. Red twig dogwood will grow well in moist soil conditions too, so that should not be a factor. Pruning it back to encourage more dense growth will not help much in a situation in which any shrub is in too much shade.
The roots of the red twig dogwood are fibrous, which makes transplanting relatively easy and can help stabilize banks. It will be best to wait until this fall to move your shrub, as many plants are under stress now due to the heat and dry conditions.
The shrub is small enough to transplant now, if it was in more of an emergency situation, such as moving it out of the way of construction. Water the shrub thoroughly a couple days before moving it, should you decide to relocate it soon.
Try to move it to a site in your garden with full sun. This shrub tolerates a wide range of soil conditions and is native to moist or swampy sites, but will adapt well to drier sites.
The brightest stem color will be on the young stems, so your future pruning practices should encourage the production of young stems from the base of the plant.
Remove the oldest canes at ground level every two to three years and cut back other stems as necessary to control the shrub’s height. When pruning during the late winter dormant season, one can stick the cut branches into the ground to develop new shrubs. Push the branches 10 to 12 inches deep and keep them moist. This also works very well with willows.