Are There Different Types Of Dogwood Trees?

Are there different types of dogwood trees? Of the 17 species of dogwood native to North America, the four most common garden types are

native flowering dogwoods, Pacific dogwood, Cornelian cherry dogwood, and kousa dogwoods

.

What is the difference between a dogwood and a kousa dogwood?

The kousa dogwood has similar “flowers” or bracts (modified leaves) to the flower dogwood in that they are a creamy white. However, a difference is that

the flowers will appear after the leaves emerge in the spring usually several weeks after the flowering dogwood

.

How many varieties of dogwood trees are there?

There are a total of

17 types

of dogwood trees that are native to North America. Among these, four species are found most commonly in the gardens. Two of these are native, and two aren’t, but they gained immense popularity because of their disease resistance.

What is the prettiest dogwood tree?

• Cornus controversa ‘Variegata’
• Cornus ‘Eddie’s White Wonder’
• Cornus florida.
• Cornus florida ‘Cherokee Chief’
• Cornus kousa var chinensis.
• Cornus kousa ‘China Girl’
• Cornus kousa ‘Miss Satomi’
• Cornus kousa ‘Schmetterling’

What type of dogwood tree do I have?

You can identify a dogwood by looking for

smooth-edged leaves with veins that curve parallel to the margins (edges)

. Flowers may or may not feature large bracts like those of the flowering dogwood (Cornus florida). After pollination, they produce a type of fruit known as a drupe.

What is the most popular dogwood?

There are many varieties of dogwood, and perhaps the most popular one among both amateur and professional gardeners is the

flowering dogwood (cornus florida)

. As they are native to Eastern North America, where there are many much taller species of trees, they have adapted to grow in a bit of shade.

What does a kousa dogwood tree look like?

Features

dark green leaves that are 2–4′′ long and elliptic-ovate in shape

. Has a beautiful form with horizontal branching. Grows in a rounded shape. Requires mulch around the trunk to protect it from lawnmower or weed cutter damage that could cause poor health.

What is the difference between a dogwood shrub and a dogwood tree?

They grow fast and provide year-round garden interest with spring flowers, summer berries, and exceptional fall color. However,

shrubby dogwoods do not grow the showy bracts that the taller dogwood trees do

. Their flowers also appear after the foliage has fully grown in.

What is the difference between a redbud tree and a dogwood tree?

Dogwoods are stiffer than redbuds, their leafy growth is more lush, and growth habit is rounded and wide

. The redbud tree sprouts elegant vase-like sprays of willowy limbs and branches and appears more lithe and slender. Most redbud trees can live up to 25 years, but the flowering dogwood endures three times as long.

What is special about a dogwood tree?

The dogwood tree

contains both male and female reproductive organs

. This allows it to self-pollinate and means it can produce seeds on its own. The fruit of the dogwood tree is a popular food source for many different bird species.

Which is the hardiest dogwood tree?

The

pagoda dogwood

(Cornus alternifolia) is native to much of eastern North America and grows in USDA zones 3 to 7, making it the most cold hardy dogwood tree.

How do I pick a good dogwood tree?

Choose the Size

With either a single short trunk, or several main stems of equal sizes, mature trees are usually at least as broad as they are tall, and often wider. Most trees fall in the range of 15 to 30 feet tall and wide, so when choosing a planting spot, be sure to allow enough room for that mature spread.

How many colors of dogwood trees are there?

Like the American dogwood, you can find the Kousa Dogwood in many colors, from

white, through pale pinks, and in dark pinks too

. By growing both trees – the American and the Asian – you can have dogwoods in flower in your garden from mid-spring to early summer.

What is a pink dogwood tree called?

Pink Dogwood

Cornus florida var. rubr

.

What does dogwood tree look like?

Dogwood trees are easy to recognize due to their characteristic bark, smooth oval leaves, and white flower clusters. To identify dogwood trees, look for their

hard, grayish bark that looks like alligator skin

. Then, see if the leaves are elongated oval shapes with smooth edges and a pointed tip.

Are dogwood good trees?

Dogwood trees are easily recognizable and incredibly popular in the home landscape

and for good reason. These beautiful trees are symbols of spring. They offer dazzling displays in both spring and fall. Enjoy attractive blooms in early or mid spring, depending on the variety, and amazing red autumn foliage.

Are there different size dogwood trees?

Flowering dogwoods grow to between 12 and 20 feet (3.5-6 m.) tall with a trunk diameter of 6 to 12 inches (15-31 cm.)

. They thrive in sun or shade. Those in full sun are shorter with better leaf color, especially in the fall.

What time of year is best to plant a dogwood tree?

Planting. The best time to plant white dogwoods is

in the spring

, when the soil is moist and before the tree growth begins.

Which dogwood is best in full sun?

Light. Dogwood grows fine in shade, but it won’t bloom there. For blooms, it needs at least a half-day of sun.

For the heaviest bloom

, plant it in full sun.

Is there a pink kousa dogwood?

Cornus kousa var.

The Pink Kousa Dogwood is a beautiful, showy small tree that blooms weeks later than our Native Dogwood Trees

. The blooms are pink and last for almost a month in the spring before turning to bright red berries that the birds adore.

Is there a dwarf dogwood tree?

Dwarf dogwood, is also known as bunchberry, bunchberry dogwood, and Canadian dwarf cornel

. This perennial sub-shrub is a diminutive member of the dogwood family (Cornaceae).

Are kousa dogwood trees messy?

Fruiting kousa dogwood can add some fall interest to the landscape.

Once kousa dogwood fruit falls to the ground, it can create a mess as it is walked upon and/or rots

.

Where is the best place to plant a dogwood bush?

Choose a site for your dogwoods that is well-drained but does not get extremely dry. Soil high in organic matter is best. Dogwoods can be planted in

full sun or partial shade

, though partial shade is best (morning sun in particular). Dogwoods are typically an understory tree in the wild.

Is a magnolia tree a dogwood?

Magnolias are typically much larger than dogwoods

. Southern magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora) is a tall, often pyramid-shaped tree with branches that grow to the ground. This tree grows 40 to 80 feet tall and 40 feet wide and is hardy in USDA zones 7 through 9.

What does dogwood look like in summer?

Flowering Dogwood trees (Cornus florida and Cornus kousa) have large flower bracts in late spring to early summer that come in

shades of white to rich pink

.

Is there a purple dogwood tree?

Cornus florida ‘Purple Glory’

With leaves that are dark purple in coloration and blossoms of four dark red bracts, the plant offers a unique appeal for dogwood enthusiasts looking for a dogwood outside of the typical description. Its plant patent number is #4627.

Why is the redbud called the Judas tree?

Its common name

derives from the belief that Judas Iscariot hanged him- self from this tree species after he betrayed Jesus

. (It has other common names, too, with more cheerful connotations—including the love tree and the Mediterranean redbud.)

What do Redbuds look like?

Eastern redbud

leaves are alternate, simple, broadly heart-shaped and 3 to 5 inches high and wide

. Leaves emerge reddish, turning green as they expand. Leaves are dark green in summer and yellowish in autumn. The showy flowers are pea-like and rosy pink with a purplish tinge.

How do you tell the difference between a male and female dogwood?

North American dogwoods, Cornus species, are all hermaphroditic with both male (stamens and anthers) and female (stigma, style and ovary) flower parts.

The female parts (ovaries) produce the berries

but since all the Cornus species in North America are hermaphroditic, they will all have berries.

Do you need a male and female dogwood tree?

Dogwoods are not dioecious the way hollies are, so

the lack of a male/female is not your problem

. With the declining bee population, pollination could be a problem, especially if the plants flowered very early before there were many pollinators around; but that is not likely to happen in four consecutive years.

What is the lifespan of a dogwood tree?

It is a plant with four-season character – showy spring flowers, summer and fall foliage, fall fruit and winter branching habit. Trees can be used in groupings, as specimens or in naturalized areas. The average lifespan is

80 years

. Flowering dogwood is rated hardy in USDA Zones 5 to 9.

What is the fastest growing dogwood?

mas, or the

Cornelian cherry dogwood

, features yellow spring flowers and grows on multiple stems to a maximum height of 25 feet and width of 20 feet.

How do I protect my dogwood in the winter?

Place a burlap barrier on the windward side of your dogwood tree to protect it from freezing wind and rain

. Pound three tall stakes into the ground, equal distances apart, to form a triangle around your tree. Attach a length of burlap fabric to two sides of the triangle to provide protection in these directions.