The Dogwood Nature Trail

The Dogwood Trail is an inviting quarter-mile meander through 69 different kinds of dogwoods. It’s full of surprises, such as a contorted red-twig dogwood, a tall, dense, twisty mass. Howell Nurseries was well known for creating and propagating dogwood varieties, including many varieties of the much-loved pink dogwoods, which are rare in the wild. Bruce Howell found one around 1900 and propagated it. Thus began the popular pink dogwoods sold by Howell Nurseries all over the Southeast. 

Dogwoods bloom along the path March through June, and wildflowers such as asters, tick seed, and black-eyed susans carry on the display through summer. In fall, foliage and berries turn red, acorns fall from oaks, and migrating birds fill the trees. A side path leading to a stone wall and a bamboo forest is shaded by mature trees left over from Howell nursery stock, the result of saplings lined up for sale many decades ago. They took root through their ball-and-burlap to grow into a formal allée fit for a French chateau. 

Conceptualized in 2009, the Dogwood Trail began in 2010 with the creation of a soft surface path as well as over a mile of irrigation line. This was made possible through donations from the Wolf Tree family, Howell Nurseries collaborators for six decades on projects throughout the area. The Wold Tree Company volunteered hundreds of man hours to help install the stone border and plant trees. In 2012/13, over 100 dogwoods were installed through contributions of the Dogwood Arts Festival's Bazillion Blooms program, as well as from our own stock and dogwood development history. Our collection has grown to be one of the most diverse in the country, containing specimens from all over the world including several threatened species.

Long-term research plays out along this trail, too. The University of Tennessee Appalachian series of dogwoods are unusually resistant to fungal diseases that damage dogwoods in the wild and in landscaping. With further research, these hardy qualities may protect our vibrant dogwood population for the future.

Thank you to Cindy Moffett for her work so wonderfully capturing our garden spaces in words.