The Flowering dogwood (Cornus florida pictured above) and Rose dogwood (Cornus kousa) pictured below respectively, grace many homeowners yards. Typically small in height with an open spread, the cross shaped flowers will delight for several days.
Dogwoods, of which there are many varieties, lend themselves to some easy identification traits. For one, the veins in the leaves curve towards the outer edges. Another is that the tree generally falls into the "MAD-BUCK" way of determining the species. MAD-Buck is an acronym used by some in the eastern US to approach tree identification. Approximately 80% of the deciduous trees in the east have opposite branches. Those species are in the maple, ash, dogwood and buckeye tree families (a noticeable exception is the native Alternate Leaved dogwood). So when contemplating what kind of non-evergreen tree it may be, checkout its branching pattern first.
When at times I point out to people that a tree is a dogwood, I will ask the unsuspecting person "Do you know how I know it is a Dogwood?", and often the response is no. I will tell them "By its bark."
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