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Cornus sericea L. ssp. sericea

Red osier dogwood

KingdomPlantaePlants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
SubkingdomTracheobiontaVascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
DivisionMagnoliophytaFlowering plants, also known as angiosperms
ClassMagnoliopsidaDicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
SubclassAsteridaeA large class that encompasses asters
OrderCornalesIncludes dogwoods, hydrangeas, stickleafs, tupelos, even sillyberries
FamilyCornaceaeDogwood family
GenusCornusLatin for “a horn”
SpeciessericeaSilky
ssp.sericeaSilky

About plant names...

Red osier dogwood is native to North America. It produces its own antifreeze, surviving temperatures down to –32°F.

Identification: This deciduous shrub is 3-18′ (91-548 cm) high, and about the same in width. It is extensively branched. Stems are dark red when young, but fade to gray-green as they age, becoming red again in the fall. Leaves are 2-5″ (5-12 cm) long and 1-2½″ (2.5-6.3 cm) wide, oval, bright red in the fall. Red osier flowers are small and white, occurring in flat-topped groups. The fruits are white or dull white berries, about ¼″ (6.3 mm), on bright red stems. (This rather striking combination of white berries and bright red stems also occurs in white baneberry, but baneberry bushes are smaller, and the leaves are very different.)

See also the cultivar Cornus sericea ‘Silver and Gold’.

Online References:

The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Earl J.S. Rook's Flora, Fauna, Earth, and Sky ... The Natural History of the Northwoods

The Virginia Tech Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation

The Theodore Payne Foundation

Calflora

CalPhotos

The Jepson Manual

References:

Petrides, George A., Peterson Field Guides: Trees and Shrubs, Houghton Mifflin Co., 1972, p. 76, 106

Little, Elbert L., National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Trees, Eastern Region, Alfred A. Knopf, 1980, p. 78, 617

Fisher, Kathleen, Taylor's Guide to Shrubs, Houghton Mifflin Co., 2000, p. 13, 277

Dirr, Michael A., Dirr’s Hardy Trees and Shrubs, Timber Press, 1997, p. 110

Symonds, George W.D., Shrub Identification Book, HarperCollins Publishers Inc., 1963, p. 98

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

Berries are white ... the wrinkled blue berries are probably the result of a mold or fungus. · 9/16/2016 · Cadillac Mountain South Ridge Tr, Bar Harbor, Maine ID is uncertain

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

9/3/2009 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Ayer, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 6 × 9″ (14 × 22 cm) ID is uncertain

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

8/31/2021 · Hackett and Minot Trails, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (16 × 11 cm)

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

6/11/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 5 × 3″ (12 × 8.4 cm) ID is uncertain

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

5/29/2010 · Maine Audubon Gilsland Farm Audubon Center, Falmouth, Maine · ≈ 11 × 7″ (27 × 18 cm) ID is uncertain

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

6/11/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 9 × 6″ (22 × 15 cm) ID is uncertain

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

8/1/2009 · Stan & Connie’s, Falmouth, Maine · ≈ 10 × 7″ (25 × 17 cm) ID is uncertain

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

5/29/2010 · Maine Audubon Gilsland Farm Audubon Center, Falmouth, Maine · ≈ 3½ × 2½″ (9.8 × 6.6 cm) ID is uncertain

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

9/20/2009 · Wild Gardens of Acadia, Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 14 × 9″ (35 × 23 cm)

Cornus alba L. p.p.

Cornus alba L. var. baileyi (J.M. Coult. & Evans) B. Boivin

Cornus alba L. var. interior (Rydb.) B. Boivin

Cornus alba L. ssp. stolonifera (Michx.) Wangerin

Cornus alba L. var. sibirica Lodd. ex Loudon

Cornus baileyi J.M. Coult. & Evans

Cornus instolonea A. Nelson

Cornus interior (Rydb.) N. Petersen

Cornus sericea L. var. interior (Rydb.) H. St. John

Cornus sericea L. ssp. stolonifera (Michx.) Fosberg

Cornus stolonifera Michx.

Cornus stolonifera Michx. var. baileyi (J.M. Coult. & Evans) Drescher

Cornus stolonifera Michx. var. coloradensis (Koehne) C.K. Schneid.

Cornus stolonifera Michx. var. interior (Rydb.) H. St. John

Cornus stolonifera Michx. var. stolonifera

Swida instolonea (A. Nelson) Rydb.

Swida sericea (L.) Holub

Swida stolonifera (Michx.) Rydb.

 

Cornus sericea ssp. sericea description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 28 Sep 2023.

© FloraFinder.org. All rights reserved.


 

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

6/11/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 9 × 6″ (22 × 15 cm) ID is uncertain

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

8/31/2021 · Hackett and Minot Trails, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 6 × 4″ (15 × 10 cm)

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

Berries are white ... the wrinkled blue berries are probably the result of a mold or fungus. · 9/16/2016 · Cadillac Mountain South Ridge Tr, Bar Harbor, Maine ID is uncertain

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

8/1/2009 · Stan & Connie’s, Falmouth, Maine · ≈ 15 × 10″ (38 × 25 cm) ID is uncertain

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

9/14/2009 · Near Nashoba Hospital, Ayer, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 12 × 8″ (31 × 20 cm) ID is uncertain

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

8/1/2009 · Stan & Connie’s, Falmouth, Maine · ≈ 13 × 9″ (33 × 22 cm) ID is uncertain

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

3/2/2011 · Mary­land

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

9/16/2016 · Cadillac Mountain South Ridge Tr, Bar Harbor, Maine ID is uncertain

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

9/20/2009 · Wild Gardens of Acadia, Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 15 × 10″ (39 × 26 cm)

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

8/31/2021 · Hackett and Minot Trails, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 5 × 3½″ (13 × 9 cm)

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

3/2/2011 · Mary­land · ≈ 6 × 9″ (15 × 23 cm)

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

9/3/2009 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Ayer, Mass­a­chu­setts · ≈ 14 × 9″ (35 × 23 cm) ID is uncertain

Cornus sericea (red osier dogwood)

9/18/2009 · Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 5 × 3½″ (13 × 9 cm)

Range:

About this map...