For the Flowering Dogwood, the Latin name is “Cornus florida”. “Cornus” derives from the word “cornu”, which today translates into a “horn”. Cornus refers to the hard wood the tree has. While “florida” stems from the Latin word “flos”, which is understood as “flower” or “flowery”. The common name for Cornus florida is Flowering Dogwood. “Flowering” comes from showy spring flowers the tree displays, while “dogwood” was most likely named after it was believed that early colonial people used the wood from the tree to make skewers, which were commonly referred to as “dogs”.
Like all living organisms, the Flowering Dogwood has a detailed taxonomy. Because the Flowering Dogwood is a tree, and thus a plant, it belongs to the kingdom …show more content…
These fruits are seen as red, shiny, and oval shaped berries, often found found in clusters. Each cluster contains 3 to 4 individual, elongated fruits grouped together.While the fruits are poisonous for humans to consume, it was thought a long time by colonials that it wasn’t suitable for dogs either, but that has yet been adequately established. However, many birds do take the opportunity to eat the fruits occasionally. These scarlett red fruits with seeds inside, rather the drupes as they are more commonly referred to as, are normally no longer than half an inch long. During the months of September and October, the fruits begin to …show more content…
The tree is native to eastern United States, it can be found in “floodplains, slopes, bluffs, ravines, gum swamps, along fencerows, and in old-field communities”. While the tree can grow on many different types of habitats, the optimal conditions include fertile, moist, and well drained areas. Having soil that is cool, acidic (pH ranging from 6 to 7), and moist with organic matter is ideal. The Flowering Dogwood does not bode well in areas with extremities such as severe heat, pollution, road salt, or drought. They would not survive in drought areas as their shallow root system would not have enough water to take in. Like all other plants, this tree should have a full amount of sunlight available. However, it is shown to have been able to tolerate partial shade relatively