Mid-Atlantic Gardening: Pagoda Dogwood, Cornus alternifolia, 1 by Rickwebb

Rickwebb wrote:
Pagoda Dogwood is a beautiful bushy tree native from Nova Scotia down the Appalachian Region and around the Great Lakes. It grows wide and needs room. It did well in many Chicago area landscapes where the soil was good quality and it was not in a really hot, dry location. The first photo is a specimen I found wild in the woods of se PA, where I occasionally see some. The second is a specimen planted near a church in Downingtown, PA in bloom in mid-may 2011. The third photo shows the flowers clusters of many tiny creamy white flowers. The forth shows the blue-black fruit in late July in Crow's Nest State Park near reading, PA, relished by birds, but not good for people to eat. The fifth photo is in January 2012 of the landscape specimen. This species has a wide branching habit that has twigs in sort of roller coaster-like and wishbone-like formation. Its big brother, the Flowering Dogwood, dominates the market in the East and South. It is a wonderful small tree that should be planted much more.