Trees, with opposite petioled pinnately veined leaves and small perfect yellowish or greenish flowers in heads subtended by a conspicuous involucre of 4 to 6 large white or pink bracts. Calyx 4-lobed; corolla of 4 valvate petals; stamens 4, with slender filaments and elliptic anthers; ovary sessile, 2-celled; style terminated by the depressed stigma; ovules 1 in each cavity of the ovary, pendulous. Fruit with thin acrid flesh, surmounted by the calyx, the stone 2-seeded; seeds oblong; endosperm fleshy; embryo straight. [Greek, dogwood.]

Two species, the following typical one, and C. Nuttallii, of northwestern America.

1. Cynoxylon Flóridum (L.) Raf. Flowering Dogwood

Fig. 3189

Cornus ftorida L. Sp. Pl. 117. 1753. Cynoxylon floridum Raf.; Britton & Shafer, N. A. Trees 744. 1908.

A small tree, or large shrub, with very rough bark and spreading branches, reaching the maximum height of about 400 and trunk diameter of 1 1/2°. Leaves petioled, ovate, or oval, rarely obovate, entire, pale and slightly pubescent on the veins beneath, dark green and glabrous, or minutely pubescent above, 3'-6' long, acute at the apex, usually narrowed at the base; petioles 3"-10" long; bracts of the involucre white or pinkish (rarely rose-red), very conspicuous, obovate, obcordate, or emarginate, strongly parallel-veined, 1'-2 1/2' long; flowers greenish-yellow, capitate; fruit ovoid, scarlet, 5"-6" long, crowned with the persistent calyx; stone smooth, channeled, ovoid, 3"-4" long.

In woods, Maine and Ontario to Florida, Minnesota, Kentucky, Kansas and Texas. Ascends to 4400 ft. in Virginia. Wood hard, brown; weight per cubic foot 50 lbs. Leaves bright red in autumn. Fruit often persistent over winter. Arrow-wood. Box-wood. Cornelian tree. False box or box-wood. Nature's-mistake. Florida dogwood. White cornel. Indian arrow-wood. April-June.