[Shrubs with Simple-pinnate Leaves]

Creek Dogwood

Scientific Name:

Cornus stolonifera (43K)

Family Name:

Dogwood Family

Habitat:

Wet forest sites, frequently along streams, in ditches, or in wetland swales.

Characteristics:

1. Leaves oval,dark shiny green above, lighter below.
2. Flowers white, tiny, in rounded clusters at the tips of the stems.
3. Stems red in winter (sold as Red-twig Dogwood at nurseries).
4. Berries white.
5. Plant is a small tree, to twenty feet.

Uses or Importances:

1. Ornamental tree.
2. Wood is strong, used for tool handles.
3. Small straight stems, once called dags (hence the original plant name- dagwood), which are used as skewers for campfire cooking.
4. The bark was at one time dried and used as a tea for treating colds & flu.

Paul Slichter