[Bert]

Dose anyone know if you can and how you take cuttings from a wedding cake tree?
 Would really like to give it a go. As a friend has one that isn't doing very well. In fact the only reason it is still upright is the 4 ropes holding it  . Bless the little fella he is still trying ( in places ) to live. I don't know if it is the right time of year to take cuttings, but he may not still be there when the time is right, as we have been asked to take it down. He is not big, 8 maybe 10 inches round the base of the trunk, 16(ish) foot high.
 Any advice would be great, Thank you.

[doganjo]

Never heard of a wedding cake tree - do you have  any photos?  Could a trench be dog round it's base and the roots spread out to give it more purchase and fresher soil so that it may regenerate?

[colliewobbles]

http://www.barcham.co.uk/trees/cornus-controversa-wedding-cake-tree

Unless anyone else comes along with advice I have a wonderful RHS encyclopedia at home and will look this up for you later.

[Fleecewife]

Wedding cake trees are pretty.  I think it would be worth taking both soft and hard cuttings now and seeing what happens.  Use a hormone rooting powder if you like it.   If it doesn't work, well you've lost nothing, and if it does, you have some free baby trees.
One thing to be wary of is whether it may be diseased and this is why it's dying.  If that is so then vegetative cuttings would retain the disease.
 
Have a careful look at why it's not secure - is it the soil it's in, the site, the wind or that it was originally pot grown and the roots never spread out enough.  Then if any of your cuttings take you can prevent a repeat performance with the new generation.