Buds appeared in March and from then there was no stopping the growth of several soft, pale green stems climbing up the supporting branches of the cornus.
Now is the time to take hardwood cuttings from shrubs such as dogwood or cornus, says Gina Parkinson.
This is cheap and easy to do with specimens such as berberis, buddleia, cornus, kerria, philadelphus, spirea and willow.
Deciduous shrubs can also be used, especially for inside decoration, where long, bare branches of cornus or willow look good put into a large, heavy container and draped with fairy lights.
The branches from coloured stemmed cornus, which are cut hard back each March are very useful for this job.