Red twig dogwood flowers3/16/2023 sericea) is a medium to large shrub native to North America. The word dogwood, in fact, is a corruption of the Scandinavian term “dag” meaning skewer (for the hardened sticks used to roast meat). Red-osier dogwood, Cornus stolonifera (formerly C. as red twig dogwoods and puts on a show-stopping display of huge flowers in. The red twig dogwood is a shrub with bright, red branches that add a beautiful and unique display in every season along with quaint white flowers in the. Green oval leaves have irregular white edges. He recommended its use only in moderation.įor centuries, humans have also used the hard wood of dogwood for basketry, wicker, farm implements, and weaving shuttles. Gardeners have a vast selection of companion plants for red twig dogwood. Plant Description: Large, vigorous shrub with dark red branches and twigs. Harrington wrote that Red-osier “is said to be aromatic and pungent, giving a narcotic effect approaching stupefaction”. The inner bark of young stems was split and scraped into threads and toasted over a fire before being mixed with real tobacco. Red-osier dogwood was one of several plants referred to as “kinnikinik” by American Indians for its use as a tobacco substitute. In spring leaves emerge with bright pink. Dogwood pith is unusual in its rubbery elasticity which allows it to be pulled like cotton candy batter (though it is less edible and brightly colored). Showy all year long, Touch of Elegance Red Twig Dogwood, Cornus alba, adds texture and color to the garden. Pith is part of the network of fibers that give a stem its strength and flexibility. The most reliable way to identify any dogwood is to carefully break the petiole (leaf stalk) and slowly pull each half apart to reveal the stringy white pith inside. Red osier lacks the showy petal-like leafy bracts surrounding the flower clusters that are characteristic of the flowering dogwood ( Cornus florida), but still makes a showy garden plant for its foliage and bright red stems (red-osier is French for “red willowy shoot” based on the resemblance of winter dogwoods to leafless willows. Cornus sericea is a 3 to 9 foot tall shrub that can be recognized by its flat, umbrella-like cluster of small four or five-petal white flowers and oval leaves with prominent veins that gently curl to trace the shape of the leaf margin. Opposite leaves with rounded bases are ovate to lance-shaped and dark green. sericea) is our most widespread native species, occurring over most of the continent except for the southern Great Plains and the southeast. Red osier dogwood is a deciduous shrub with a rounded, spreading form. Of the approximately 50 species of dogwood (genus Cornus) found worldwide, 16 are native to the United States. Photo © Steve Hegji.Ĭloseup of the white, berry-like fruits of Cornus sericea, fromBig Cottonwood Canyon, Salt Lake County, Utah. Photo © Bill Gray.Ĭloseup of the flowers of Cornus sericea, from Bell’s Canyon, Salt Lake County, Utah. Umbel of white flowers and oval leaves of Cornus sericea from City Creek Canyon, Salt Lake County, Utah.
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