''Cornus'' is a genus of about 30–60 species of woody plants in the familyCornaceae, commonly known as dogwoods, which can generally be distinguished by their blossoms, berries, and distinctive bark. Most are deciduoustrees or
shrub
A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...
s, but a few species are nearly herbaceous perennial subshrubs, and some species are evergreen. Several species have small heads of inconspicuous flowers surrounded by an involucre of large, typically white petal-like bracts, while others have more open clusters of
petal
Petals are modified Leaf, leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often advertising coloration, brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''c ...
-bearing flowers. The various species of dogwood are native throughout much of temperate and
boreal
Boreal may refer to:
Climatology and geography
*Boreal (age), the first climatic phase of the Blytt-Sernander sequence of northern Europe, during the Holocene epoch
*Boreal climate, a climate characterized by long winters and short, cool to mild ...
Eurasia and North America, with China, Japan, and the southeastern United States being particularly rich in native species.
Species include the common dogwood '' Cornus sanguinea'' of Eurasia, the widely cultivated flowering dogwood ''(
Cornus florida
''Cornus florida'', the flowering dogwood, is a species of flowering tree in the family Cornaceae native to eastern North America and northern Mexico. An endemic population once spanned from southernmost coastal Maine south to northern Florida ...
)'' of eastern North America, the Pacific dogwood '' Cornus nuttallii'' of western North America, the Kousa dogwood '' Cornus kousa'' of eastern Asia, and two low-growing boreal species, the Canadian and Eurasian dwarf cornels (or bunchberries), '' Cornus canadensis'' and '' Cornus suecica'' respectively.
Depending on botanical interpretation, the dogwoods are variously divided into one to nine
genera
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nomenclat ...
or
subgenera
In biology, a subgenus (plural: subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus.
In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between t ...
; a broadly inclusive genus ''Cornus'' is accepted here.
Terminology
''Cornus'' is the Latin word for the cornel tree, ''
Cornus mas
''Cornus mas'', commonly known as cornel (also the Cornelian cherry, European cornel or Cornelian cherry dogwood), is a species of shrub or small tree in the dogwood genus ''Cornus'' native to Southern Europe and Southwestern Asia.
Description
It ...
''.
The name ''cornel'' dates to the 1550s, via German from Middle Latin ''cornolium'', ultimately from the diminutive ''cornuculum'', of ''cornum'', the Latin word for the cornel cherry. ''Cornus'' means "horn",Gledhill, David (2008). "The Names of Plants". Cambridge University Press. (hardback), (paperback). pp 121
presumably applied to the cherry after the example of κερασός, the Greek word for "cherry", which itself is of pre-Greek origin but reminiscent of κέρας, the Greek word for "horn".
The name "dog-tree" entered the English vocabulary before 1548, becoming "dogwood" by 1614. Once the name dogwood was affixed to this kind of tree, it soon acquired a secondary name as the Hound's Tree, while the fruits came to be known as "dogberries" or "houndberries" (the latter a name also for the berries of black nightshade, alluding to Hecate's hounds).
The name was explained, from as early as the 16th century itself, as derived from '' dag'' "skewer",Vedel, H., & Lange, J. (1960). ''Trees and Bushes in Wood and Hedgerow''. Metheun & Co. Ltd., London. as the wood of the tree was said to have been used to make butcher's skewers. This is uncertain, as the form ''*dagwood'' was never attested. It is also possible that the tree was named for its berry, called ''dogberry'' from at least the 1550s, where the implication could be that the quality of the berry is inferior, as it were "fit for a dog".
An older name of the dogwood in English is ''whipple-tree'', occurring in a list of trees (as ''whipultre'') in
Geoffrey Chaucer
Geoffrey Chaucer (; – 25 October 1400) was an English poet, author, and civil servant best known for ''The Canterbury Tales''. He has been called the "father of English literature", or, alternatively, the "father of English poetry". He wa ...
'' Canterbury Tales''.
This name is cognate with the Middle Low German ''wipel-bom'' "cornel", Dutch ''wepe, weype'' "cornel" (the ''wh-'' in Chaucer is unetymological, the word would have been Middle English ''wipel''). The tree was so named for waving its branches, c.f. Middle Dutch ''wepelen'' "totter, waver", Frisian ''wepeln'', German ''wippen''.
The name '' whippletree'', also ''whiffle-tree'', now refers to an element of the traction of a horse-drawn cart linking the drawpole of the cart to the harnesses of the horses in file. In this sense it is first recorded in 1733. This mechanism was usually made from oak or ash (and not from dogwood), and it is unlikely that there is a connection to the name for ''whipple-tree'' for Cornus.
Description
Dogwoods have simple, untoothed
leaves
A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...
with the veins curving distinctively as they approach the leaf margins. Most dogwood species have opposite leaves, while a few, such as ''Cornus alternifolia'' and ''C. controversa,'' have their leaves alternate. Dogwood flowers have four parts. In many species, the flowers are borne separately in open (but often dense) clusters, while in various other species (such as the flowering dogwood), the flowers themselves are tightly clustered, lacking showy
petal
Petals are modified Leaf, leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often advertising coloration, brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''c ...
s, but surrounded by four to six large, typically white petal-like
bract
In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis or cone scale. Bracts are usually different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of ...
drupe
In botany, a drupe (or stone fruit) is an indehiscent fruit in which an outer fleshy part (exocarp, or skin, and mesocarp, or flesh) surrounds a single shell (the ''pit'', ''stone'', or '' pyrena'') of hardened endocarp with a seed (''kernel'') ...
s with one or two seeds, often brightly colorful. The drupes of species in the subgenus ''Cornus'' are edible. Many are without much flavor. '' Cornus kousa'' and ''
Cornus mas
''Cornus mas'', commonly known as cornel (also the Cornelian cherry, European cornel or Cornelian cherry dogwood), is a species of shrub or small tree in the dogwood genus ''Cornus'' native to Southern Europe and Southwestern Asia.
Description
It ...
'' are sold commercially as edible fruit trees. The fruits of ''Cornus kousa'' have a sweet, tropical pudding like flavor in addition to hard pits. The fruits of ''Cornus mas'' are both tart and sweet when completely ripe. They have been eaten in Eastern Europe for centuries, both as food and medicine to fight colds and flus. They are very high in vitamin C. However, those of species in subgenus ''Swida'' are mildly toxic to people, though readily eaten by birds.
Dogwoods are used as food plants by the larvae of some species of butterflies and moths, including the emperor moth, the engrailed, the small angle shades, and the following case-bearers of the genus '' Coleophora'': ''C. ahenella'', ''C. salicivorella'' (recorded on ''Cornus canadensis''), ''C. albiantennaella'', ''C. cornella'' and ''C. cornivorella,'' with the latter three all feeding exclusively on ''Cornus.''
Uses
Dogwoods are widely planted horticulturally, and the dense wood of the larger-stemmed species is valued for certain specialized purposes. Cutting boards and fine turnings can be made from this fine grained and beautiful wood. Over 32 different varieties of game birds, including quail, feed on the red seeds.
Horticulture
Various species of ''Cornus,'' particularly the flowering dogwood ''(Cornus florida),'' are ubiquitous in American gardens and landscaping; horticulturistDonald Wyman stated, "There is a dogwood for almost every part of the U.S. except the hottest and driest areas". In contrast, in Northwest Europe the lack of sharp winters and hot summers makes ''Cornus florida'' very shy of flowering.
Other ''Cornus'' species are
stolon
In biology, stolons (from Latin '' stolō'', genitive ''stolōnis'' – "branch"), also known as runners, are horizontal connections between organisms. They may be part of the organism, or of its skeleton; typically, animal stolons are external s ...
iferous shrubs that grow naturally in wet habitats and along waterways. Several of these are used along highways and in naturalizing landscape plantings, especially those species with bright red or bright yellow stems, particularly conspicuous in winter, such as ''
Cornus stolonifera
''Cornus sericea'', the red osier or red-osier dogwood, is a species of flowering plant in the family Cornaceae, native to much of North America. It has sometimes been considered a synonym of the Asian species ''Cornus alba''. Other names includ ...
''.
The following
cultivars
A cultivar is a type of Horticulture, cultivated plant that people have selected for desired phenotypic trait, traits and when Plant propagation, propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and st ...
Award of Garden Merit
The Award of Garden Merit (AGM) is a long-established annual award for plants by the British Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). It is based on assessment of the plants' performance under UK growing conditions.
History
The Award of Garden Merit ...
(confirmed 2017):
*‘Eddie’s White Wonder’
*‘Norman Hadden’
*‘Ormonde’
*‘Porlock’
Fruits
The species ''
Cornus mas
''Cornus mas'', commonly known as cornel (also the Cornelian cherry, European cornel or Cornelian cherry dogwood), is a species of shrub or small tree in the dogwood genus ''Cornus'' native to Southern Europe and Southwestern Asia.
Description
It ...
'' is commonly cultivated in southeastern Europe for its showy, edible berries, that have the color of the carnelian gemstone. Cornelian-cherries have one seed each and are used in syrups and preserves.
Wood
Dense and fine-grained, dogwood timber has a density of 0.79 and is highly prized for making loom shuttles, tool handles, roller skates and other small items that require a very hard and strong wood. Though it is tough for woodworking, some artisans favor dogwood for small projects such as walking canes, arrow making, mountain dulcimers and fine inlays. Dogwood wood is an excellent substitute for persimmon wood in the heads of certain golf clubs ("woods"). Dogwood lumber is rare in that it is not readily available with any manufacturer and must be cut down by the person(s) wanting to use it.
Larger items have also been occasionally made of dogwood, such as the screw-in basket-style wine or fruit presses. The first kinds of
laminate
Lamination is the technique/process of manufacturing a material in multiple layers, so that the composite material achieves improved strength, stability, sound insulation, appearance, or other properties from the use of the differing materials ...
d tennis rackets were also made from this wood, cut into thin strips.
Dogwood
twigs
A twig is a thin, often short, branch of a tree or bush.
The buds on the twig are an important diagnostic characteristic, as are the abscission scars where the leaves have fallen away. The color, texture, and patterning of the twig bark are ...
were used by U.S. pioneers to brush their teeth. They would peel off the bark, bite the twig and then scrub their teeth.
The following classification recognizes a single, inclusive genus ''Cornus,'' with four subgroups and ten subgenera supported by molecular phylogeny. Geographical ranges as native plants are given below. In addition, cultivated species occasionally persist or spread from plantings beyond their native ranges, but are rarely if ever locally
invasive
Invasive may refer to:
*Invasive (medical) procedure
*Invasive species
*Invasive observation, especially in reference to surveillance
*Invasively progressive spread of disease from one organ in the body to another, especially in reference to cancer ...
.
Blue- or white-fruited dogwoods
Paniculate or corymbose
cymes
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed on ...
; bracts minute, nonmodified; fruits globose or subglobose, white, blue, or black:
* Subgenus ''Yinquania''. Leaves opposite to subopposite; fall blooming.
** '' Cornus oblonga''. East Asia from Pakistan through the Himalayas and China.
** ''
Cornus peruviana
''Cornus peruviana'' is a species of tree in the family Cornaceae native to montane forests of southern Central America and western South America, from Costa Rica and Venezuela south to Bolivia.
Description
''Cornus peruviana'' is a small to a l ...
''. Costa Rica and Venezuela to Bolivia.
* Subgenus ''Kraniopsis''. Leaves opposite; summer blooming.
** '' Cornus alba'' (Siberian dogwood). Siberia and northern China.
** '' Cornus amomum'' (silky dogwood). Eastern U.S. east of the Great Plains except for the
Deep South
The Deep South or the Lower South is a cultural and geographic subregion in the Southern United States. The term was first used to describe the states most dependent on plantations and slavery prior to the American Civil War. Following the war ...
.
** ''
Cornus asperifolia
''Cornus asperifolia'', called toughleaf dogwood, is species of ''Cornus
''Cornus'' is a genus of about 30–60 species of woody plants in the family Cornaceae, commonly known as dogwoods, which can generally be distinguished by thei ...
'' (toughleaf dogwood). Southeastern U.S.
** ''
Cornus austrosinensis
''Cornus'' is a genus of about 30–60 species of woody plants in the family Cornaceae, commonly known as dogwoods, which can generally be distinguished by their blossoms, berries, and distinctive bark. Most are deciduous trees or shrub ...
'' (South China dogwood). East Asia.
** ''
Cornus bretschneideri
''Cornus'' is a genus of about 30–60 species of woody plants in the family Cornaceae, commonly known as dogwoods, which can generally be distinguished by their blossoms, berries, and distinctive bark. Most are deciduous trees or shrub ...
Cornus coreana
''Cornus walteri'', also called Walter's dogwood, is a deciduous shrub or small tree 8–16 m tall, native to eastern Asia in Korea and much of China from Liaoning to Yunnan.
''Cornus walteri'' has opposite, simple leaves, 5–12 cm long. ...
'' (Korean dogwood). Northeast Asia.
** '' Cornus drummondii'' (roughleaf dogwood). U.S. between the
Appalachia
Appalachia () is a cultural region in the Eastern United States that stretches from the Southern Tier of New York State to northern Alabama and Georgia. While the Appalachian Mountains stretch from Belle Isle in Newfoundland and Labrador, Ca ...
and the
Great Plains
The Great Plains (french: Grandes Plaines), sometimes simply "the Plains", is a broad expanse of flatland in North America. It is located west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains, much of it covered in prairie, steppe, an ...
Cornus foemina
''Cornus foemina'' is a species of flowering plant in the Cornaceae known by the common names stiff dogwoodCornus glabrata'' (brown dogwood or smooth dogwood). Western
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
.
** ''
Cornus hemsleyi
''Cornus hemsleyi'' is a species of dogwood
''Cornus'' is a genus of about 30–60 species of woody plants in the family Cornaceae, commonly known as dogwoods, which can generally be distinguished by their blossoms, berries, and dist ...
Cornus macrophylla
''Cornus macrophylla'', commonly known as the large-leafed dogwood, is a species of dogwood found in Afghanistan, Bhutan, India, Kashmir, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Taiwan, and several provinces in China
China, officially the People's Rep ...
'' (large-leafed dogwood; ). East Asia.
** '' Cornus obliqua'' (pale dogwood). Northeastern and central U.S., and southeastern Canada.
** '' Cornus paucinervis''. China.
** ''
Cornus racemosa
''Cornus racemosa'', the northern swamp dogwood, gray dogwood, or panicle dogwood, is a shrubby plant native to southeastern Canada and the northeastern United States. It is a member of the dogwood genus ''Cornus'' and the family Cornaceae.
Desc ...
'' (northern swamp dogwood or gray dogwood). Northeastern and central U.S., and extreme southeastern Canada.
** ''
Cornus rugosa
''Cornus rugosa'', commonly called roundleaf dogwood, is a deciduous tree native to northern parts of the eastern and central United States and southern parts of central and eastern Canada.
Description
''Cornus rugosa'' is a shrub or small tree ...
'' (round-leaf dogwood). Northeastern and north-central U.S., and southeastern Canada.
** '' Cornus sanguinea'' (common dogwood). Europe.
** '' Cornus sericea'' (red osier dogwood). Northern and western North America, except Arctic regions.
** ''
Cornus walteri
''Cornus walteri'', also called Walter's dogwood, is a deciduous shrub or small tree 8–16 m tall, native to eastern Asia in Korea and much of China from Liaoning to Yunnan.
''Cornus walteri'' has opposite, simple leaf, leaves, 5–12 cm ...
Cornus × arnoldiana
''Cornus'' × ''arnoldiana'', the Arnold dogwood, is a hybrid dogwood native to eastern North America. It is reported from Ontario, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts. It is a member of the dogwood genus ''Cornus'' and the family Cor ...
'' ( Hybrid: ''C. obliqua'' × ''C. racemosa''). Eastern North America.
* Subgenus ''Mesomora''. Leaves alternate; summer blooming.
** '' Cornus alternifolia'' (pagoda dogwood or alternate-leaf dogwood). Eastern U.S. and southeastern Canada.
** ''
Cornus controversa
''Cornus controversa'' (wedding cake tree), syn. ''Swida controversa'', is a species of flowering plant in the genus '' Cornus'' of the dogwood family Cornaceae, native to China, Korea, the Himalayas and Japan. It is a deciduous tree grow ...
'' (table dogwood). East Asia.
Cornelian cherries
Umbellate cymes; bracts modified, non-petaloid; fruits oblong, red; stone walls filled with cavities:
* Subgenus ''Afrocrania''. Dioecious, bracts 4.
**''
Cornus volkensii
''Cornus volkensii'' is a species of tree in the family Cornaceae native to montane forests of eastern Africa, from South Sudan and Kenya south to Zimbabwe and Mozambique.
Description
''Cornus volkensii'' is a small to medium-sized dioecious ev ...
''.
Afromontane
The Afromontane regions are subregions of the Afrotropical realm, one of the Earth's eight biogeographic realms, covering the plant and animal species found in the mountains of Africa and the southern Arabian Peninsula. The Afromontane regions ...
Cornus eydeana
''Cornus'' is a genus of about 30–60 species of woody plants in the family (biology), family Cornaceae, commonly known as dogwoods, which can generally be distinguished by their blossoms, berries, and distinctive bark. Most are decidu ...
''. Yunnan in China
**''
Cornus mas
''Cornus mas'', commonly known as cornel (also the Cornelian cherry, European cornel or Cornelian cherry dogwood), is a species of shrub or small tree in the dogwood genus ''Cornus'' native to Southern Europe and Southwestern Asia.
Description
It ...
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
Cornus sessilis
''Cornus sessilis'' is a species of dogwood known by the common names blackfruit cornel, blackfruit dogwood, and miner's dogwood. This is a shrub or small tree which is endemic to northern California, where it grows along streambanks in the Casc ...
Cornus chinensis
''Cornus'' is a genus of about 30–60 species of woody plants in the family Cornaceae, commonly known as dogwoods, which can generally be distinguished by their blossoms, berries, and distinctive bark. Most are deciduous trees or shru ...
'' (Chinese cornel).
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
.
Big-bracted dogwoods
Capitular cymes:
* Subgenus ''Discocrania''. Bracts 4, modified, non-petaloid; fruits oblong, red.
**'' Cornus disciflora''. Mexico and Central America
* Subgenus ''Cynoxylon''. Bracts 4 or 6, large and petaloid, fruits oblong, red.
**''
Cornus florida
''Cornus florida'', the flowering dogwood, is a species of flowering tree in the family Cornaceae native to eastern North America and northern Mexico. An endemic population once spanned from southernmost coastal Maine south to northern Florida ...
'' (flowering dogwood). U.S. east of the Great Plains, north to southern Ontario.
**'' Cornus nuttallii'' (Pacific dogwood). Western North America, from British Columbia to California.
* Subgenus ''Syncarpea''. Bracts 4, large and petaloid, fruits red, fused into a compound multi-stoned berry.
** '' Cornus capitata'' (Himalayan flowering dogwood). Himalaya.
** ''
Cornus hongkongensis
''Cornus hongkongensis'' (sometimes called ''Benthamidia hongkongensis'', ''Dendrobenthamia hongkongensis'',
'' (Hong Kong dogwood). Southern China,
Laos
Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist ...
, Vietnam.
**'' Cornus kousa'' (Kousa dogwood). Japan and (as subsp. ''chinensis'') central and northern China.
**''
Cornus multinervosa
''Cornus'' is a genus of about 30–60 species of woody plants in the family Cornaceae, commonly known as dogwoods, which can generally be distinguished by their blossoms, berries, and distinctive bark. Most are deciduous trees or shrub ...
''. Yunnan and Sichuan provinces of China
Dwarf dogwoods
Minute corymbose cymes; bracts 4, petaloid; fruit globose, red; rhizomatous herb:
* Subgenus ''Arctocrania''.
** '' Cornus canadensis'' (Canadian dwarf cornel or bunchberry) Northern North America, southward in the Appalachian and Rocky Mountains.
**'' Cornus suecica'' (Eurasian dwarf cornel or bunchberry). Northern Eurasia, locally in extreme northeast and northwest North America.
**''
Cornus × unalaschkensis
''Cornus'' × ''unalaschkensis'' is a species of flowering plant in the Cornaceae, the dogwood family. Common names for the plant include Alaskan bunchberry, western cordilleran bunchberry, or simply western bunchberry.
The species is native to ...
Newfoundland
Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...
in Canada.
''Incertae sedis'' (unplaced)
* ''
Cornus clarnensis
''Cornus clarnensis'' is an extinct species of flowering plant in the dogwood family, Cornaceae, solely known from the middle Eocene sediments exposed in north central Oregon. The species was first described from a series of isolated fossil see ...
The inflorescence of the Pacific dogwood ''( Cornus nuttallii)'' is the official flower of the province of British Columbia. The flowering dogwood (''Cornus florida'') and its inflorescence are the state tree and the state flower respectively for the U.S. Commonwealth of Virginia. It is also the state tree of Missouri and the state flower of North Carolina, and the state memorial tree of New Jersey. The term "dogwood winter", in colloquial use in the American Southeast, is sometimes used to describe a cold snap in spring, presumably because farmers believed it was not safe to plant their crops until after the dogwoods blossomed.
Anne Morrow Lindbergh gives a vivid description of the dogwood tree in her poem "Dogwood".