Dwarf Dogwood - Cornus pumila
Family Cornaceae -- Dogwood family
Live plants photographed at DuPage County, Illinois, May 31, 2007.

 

 
Dwarf Dogwood, also known as bunchberry

Dwarf dogwood is also commonly known as bunchberry or bunchberry dogwood. Dwarf dogwood is native to a broad area extending west from extreme southern Greenland across North America in boreal Canada and the northern tier of the United States (south down the Rocky Mountains into Colorado and New Mexico), across Alaska to northeastern Asia. It thrives in moist well-drained soils of forests and forest edges. In some places it is the dominant ground cover of the forest floor, in other places it can carpet stumps and fallen logs.

The erect flowering stems are generally 4-8 inches tall. The form of dwarf dogwood’s inflorescence, leaf shape and leaf venation are very similar to its relative, the flowering dogwood tree. The flowering stems emerge from the creeping underground stem late in the spring. Leaves unfold into a whorl of four to six leaves; above these leaves the inflorescence opens and flowers bloom from May through early July. The flowers of dwarf dogwood are somewhat deceptive. The four white petals are actually modified leaves (bracts) resembling flower petals. Clustered in the center of these four white to pinkish petal-like bracts are the numerous tiny white to greenish to purplish flowers of the dwarf dogwood. Flowers are pollinated by various flies and bees, which are attracted by the bright white petal-like bracts.
 


 

In the late summer, clusters of spherical red fruit appear on the inflorescence, thus the name bunchberry. although the fruits are not poisonous, they are not particularly tasty, have an odd cottony texture and a single seed. The leaves become somewhat leathery, and in the autumn the leaves can turn bright colors. Since the leaves are somewhat evergreen, in protected places they can remain throughout the winter.

Healthy, attractive trees add interest, pleasure, and value to landscapes. Some factors to keep in mind as you select a tree relate to your projected planting site and some factors relate to you. Healthy plants, growing under conditions that suit them, are marvelously engineered to deal with minor incidence of heat, cold, drought, storm damage, pests, and disease. Sometimes we unknowingly stress them, reducing their ability to stay healthy.

Trees provide cover: Birds and small animals need concealed places for nesting and hiding from predators. The presence of wildlife can make your backyard or woodlot a special place for your family and children. As urban sprawl displaces many birds and animals from their natural habitat, it becomes even more important for home and landowners to provide green space and mini-sanctuaries for birds and other wildlife.

Trees provide food: Having a wide variety of trees that provide seeds, nuts and fruit for wildlife to eat is one way to increase your success in attracting wildlife. although artificial bird feeders can supplement naturally occurring foods, they can attract unwanted pests such as pigeons, Canada geese, squirrels, and even rats. Trees also provide food by attracting insects and providing cover for their activities; mating, egg-laying. Insects form a huge portion of the warm-weather food supply for many species of songbirds.

And, most important in this age of man-made global warming, plants sequester large amounts of carbon dioxide.