As of the 2017 Arb species list, Cowling Arboretum is home to four distinct species of dogwoods, all in the genus Cornus. However, two species of dogwood are more common in the Arb than the others, the red-osier dogwood and the gray dogwood. In order to identify dogwoods in the first place, there is a common technique that sets them apart from other trees. When you tear apart the leaves of dogwoods, the two halves will stay together due to latex in the plant sap (capemaywildlife.com). Dogwoods both bloom and fruit. In the spring, they develop beautiful white flowers which appear during May and June. They also develop distinct white or bluish-white berries with red stems which are fruiting out in the Arb right now, between August and October.

The distinctions between the gray dogwood and the red-osier dogwood are most easily identified by the plant’s stem color. The red-osier dogwood has distinct red stems that pop in the ecosystem during the winter, especially when there is snow. The more moderate, less showy gray dogwood has gray bark and wart-like bumps (Minnesota Board of Water and Resources).

If you would like to know more about dogwoods, especially the red-osier dogwood, or other shrubs in the Arb, you can investigate the Guide to Shrubs of the Arboretum page on the school website.