Pale Dogwood, Silky Dogwood, Cornus obliqua, Native Minnesota Tree, Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden

	Plants of the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden
	Common Name	Scientific Name	Plant Family	Garden Location	Prime Season
	Pale Dogwood	Cornus obliqua Raf.	Dogwood	Woodland	Late Spring to Early Summer
Other names and notes	(Silky Dogwood) A Dogwood of moist places, the leaves are opposite, entire, ovate to oval shape, pale beneath and tapered at both ends. The fruits in Autumn are deep bluish. The flowers are white, 4-part, appearing in a flat-topped branched cluster in late May to through June. Stems are purplish. Fruit mature to a dark blue in late August. A good specimen grows at the intersection of Lady's-slipper Lane and Geranium Path at the far end of the Woodland Garden. You will find it's branches intertwined with the Ninebark that grows next to it. Some references such as USDA will list C. obliqua as Silky Dogwood in addition to listing C. amomum with the same common name. Newcomb separates them based solely on leaf structure. Grows as a shrub from 3 to 10 feet high. There are four Dogwoods in the Garden. All have similar looking flowers. An identification key is presented below these photos.


Above: Green fruit of early July. Below: Fruit of early August.	Above: Flower cluster of late-June. Below: Mature blue fruit of late August.

Dogwood Species	C. racemosa	C. obliqua	C. alternifolia	C. sericea
Common Name	Gray Dogwood	Pale Dogwood	Pagoda Dogwood	Red Osier Dogwood
Alternate Name	Panicled Dogwood	Silky Dogwood	Alternate-leaf Dogwood
Height & Size	to 6' forming a thicket	3 to10'shrub	to 30' small tree	to 9' in thickets
Flowers	All four dogwoods have small 4-part white flowers that are borne in branching clusters.
Flower cluster	nearly as high as wide and NOT flat topped	Flat-topped, flower stalks silky (hairy)	Flat-topped, mostly at the ends of branches	Flat-topped
Bloom period	mid- to late June	late May to June	Late May to mid-June	Early May onwards.
Leaves	Opposite, entire, stalked, oval to lance shape, pale under	Opposite, entire, stalked, ovate to oval shape, taper at both ends, pale under	Alternate, entire, stalked, broadly oval, rounded base, taper at tip. Glossy green above, form clusters at end of branches	Opposite, entire, stalked, oval to lance shaped, 5 to 7 pairs of veins, whitish under.
Branches	Gray, smooth	Purplish	Greenish, smooth	Younger branches reddish in fall, winter and spring
Fruit	White with conspicuous red stalks	dark blue	dark blue	white to lead
Native Status	Native	Native	Native	Native

Notes: This species was not present in the Garden when Martha Crone made her 1951 Plant Census. Native to Minnesota in the east central counties and in the SE.

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References: Plant characteristics are generally from sources 15, 16, 30, 31, 33, W2 & W3. Distribution principally from W2 and also 31, 34 and W1. Planting history generally from 1, 4 & 4a. Other sources by specific reference. See Reference List for details.

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