US National Arboretum - Dogwood Collection

Another area I enjoyed at the US National Arboretum this past weekend was the Dogwood Collection. Most of the dogwoods that were native to North America were past their prime so I photographed the exotics - mostly from Asia.

What we normally think of as petals are actually bracts.

And they are usually white. I was surprised at the subtle variety of bract shapes on the different treats.

Most of the time the leaves are solid green.

But not always.

They are not generally large trees since they grow under larger trees….but they do get large when they are planted as landscape trees - getting more light than they wood in a forest and never lack for enough water. I like the way breezes cause the leaves and branches to move with a floating motion, the bright red/orange clusters of drupes in the fall, and how the buds on the bare limbs in winter look like slightly squished Hersey’s kisses. The dogwood is one of my favorite trees throughout the  year.