For some strange reason, Stiff Dogwood has received less attention than other dogwoods (Cornus spp.), even though it is reasonably attractive and probably easy to grow. This species differs from other dogwoods by its pale blue to blue drupes, hairless or nearly hairless leaves that are green on both sides, and hairless red twigs with white pith. In many ways, it resembles the better-known Red-Osier Dogwood (Cornus sericea), except the latter species has white drupes and a more northern distribution. Another species with blue drupes, Cornus obliqua (Silky Dogwood), has more slender leaves that are whitened on their undersides from fine hairs. Yet another species with blue drupes, Cornus amomum (Swamp Dogwood), has leaves with brownish hairs on their undersides and its twigs have brown pith. This latter species is restricted to the southern tip of Illinois. A scientific synonym of Stiff Dogwood is Cornus stricta.

This native woody shrub is 8-15' tall; it has a rounded shape and branches frequently. The bark of the trunk and larger branches is gray, while smaller branches are brown and smooth. Young twigs are hairless and red, becoming dark reddish brown with age. The pith of the twigs is white. The opposite leaves are up to 3½' long and 2' across; they are ovate to ovate-lanceolate and smooth along their margins. Upper leaf surfaces are medium to dark green and hairless, while lower leaf surfaces are a slightly lighter shade of green and hairless to nearly hairless. The slender petioles of the leaves are up to 1' long and hairless to nearly hairless. Like the leaves of other Cornus spp. (Dogwoods), the lateral veins of the leaves curve away from the petioles. Young branches bear cymes (or flat-headed panicles) of white flowers about 1½–3' across. The stalks of each cyme are hairless. Each flower has 4 white petals, a tubular green calyx with 4 tiny teeth, 4 stamens, and a pistil with a central style. The petals are linear-lanceolate in shape. The flowers have an unpleasant odor. The blooming period occurs during late spring to early summer and lasts about 2-3 weeks. The flowers are replaced by 2-seeded fleshy drupes. At maturity, each drupe is about ¼' across and it is pale blue to blue. Each large seed (stone) is globoid in shape and fairly smooth. The root system consists of woody branching taproot; vegetative offsets are sometimes produced from underground runners. During the fall, the leaves assume attractive red-burgundy to purple colors. Cultivation

Cornus foemina P. Mill., swamp dogwood, is primarily found along the coastal plain from eastern Virginia to central Florida, west to Louisiana and north to southeastern Missouri. It is a deciduous small tree to large shrub, growing to 15 ft in height, with multiple trunks, 4 inches in diameter. Its bark is thick and smooth, frequently furrowed with shallow ridges exposing gray inner bark. The plant’s leaves are opposite and oval-shaped, with smooth margins. Flowers are creamy white, loose, and small; they occur in flat topped clusters without showy bracts. Fruits are small, open clusters of bluish to purple drupes (fleshy, one-seeded fruits).

Stiff Dogwood is uncommon in the southern half of Illinois, and absent in the upper half of the state (see Distribution Map). It is possible that this dogwood is more common than official records indicate because it can be easily confused with similar species. Habitats include low woodlands, damp thickets, low areas along streams, and swamps. This dogwood prefers moist partially shaded areas. Faunal Associations

Cornus stricta Lam.:
United States (North America)

Note: This information is based on publications available through Tropicos and may not represent the entire distribution. Tropicos does not categorize distributions as native or non-native.

Cornus foemina Mill.:
Canada (North America)
United States (North America)

Note: This information is based on publications available through Tropicos and may not represent the entire distribution. Tropicos does not categorize distributions as native or non-native.

United States

Origin: Native

Regularity: Regularly occurring

Currently: Present

Confidence: Confident

Type of Residency: Year-round

Global Range: Cornus racemosa is native to North America and occurs in dry to moist open sites from central Maine to southern Ontario and Minnesota, south to Delaware, Maryland and Virginia and west to Kentucky, Missouri, and Oklahoma (Fernald 1950). Wilson (1965) lists C. racemosa as a subspecies of C. foemina; C. foemina subsp. racemosa occurring in the northeast U.S. from Maine to Minnesota, south to Missouri and east to Virginia, C. foemina subsp. foemina occurring in the southeast from S. Carolina to Florida west to Arkansas and eastern Texas (Wilson 1965).

Swamp dogwood generally grows in swampy, low wetland habitats, barrier islands, and along streams, riverbanks, marshes and creeks. It is found growing along ditches on the second road back from the ocean at Emerald Isle and found to exhibit moderate salt tolerance.

Swamp dogwood is distributed throughout most of the southeast United States. For a current distribution map, please consult the Plant Profile page for this species on the PLANTS Website.

Stiff Dogwood is uncommon in the southern half of Illinois, and absent in the upper half of the state (see Distribution Map). It is possible that this dogwood is more common than official records indicate because it can be easily confused with similar species. Habitats include low woodlands, damp thickets, low areas along streams, and swamps. This dogwood prefers moist partially shaded areas. Faunal Associations

Comments: Gray dogwood occurs in thickets and moist soil in riparian zones, roadsides, on sandy slopes and limestone ridges (Soper and Heimburger 1982).

Like most dogwoods, this species can be grown easily from seeds collected from mature, native trees and from softwood cuttings. Seeds at maturity must be either planted immediately or prechilled. Seeds sown in nursery beds should be covered with ¼ to ½ inch of soil and mulched during the winter.

Populations: Dogwood invasion of grasslands from swales, ravines, and woodland edges of floodplains is accelerated by vegetative reproduction and tolerance to wind, full exposure or partial shade, and dry soils (Pound and Clements 1900, Costello 1931, Steyermark 1940, Albertson and Weaver 1945, Weaver 1965, Duxbury 1982).

As density within a dogwood thicket increases, groundcover vegetation decreases and may become entirely absent (Aikman 1928, Weaver 1965). Annual weeds sometimes grow beneath dogwood (Duxbury 1982, Nyboer pers. comm. 1983), and bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa) may invade dogwood thickets (Albertson and Weaver 1945, Aikman 1928). Dogwood may persist and sometimes dominate the understory of woods (Duxbury 1982).

Sexual reproduction: These dogwoods probably reach sexual maturity in three to four years. There is one viable seed per drupe in all four species (Stephens 1973). A complex of hybrids exists between C. drummondii, C. racemosa (C. foemina subsp. racemosa) and C. foemina (subsp. foemina). The hybrids have high pollen viability, robust growth, and fruit sometimes larger and more plentiful than that of the parent (Wilson 1965).

Seed dispersal: Seeds are dispersed by a variety of birds, including crows, vireos, redheaded woodpeckers and bluebirds (Ridley 1930), autumn through winter (Stephens 1973). Availability of perching sites may be important in dispersal. Smith (1975) included C. racemosa in his study of re-vegetation of forest openings, and found that most seeds were deposited by birds within 25 meters of the seed source, often in the shade near perching sites. About 25% of the dispersed seeds left the study area after consumption by long-distance flying birds.

Germination: Germination usually occurs in the spring following seed production and dispersal to a favorable site, but may be delayed a year due to a dormant embryo, hard pericarp (Brinkman 1974), and possible chemical inhibition by the pulp (Goodwin 1948). Mechanical and chemical scarification and stratification techniques are used commercially to stimulate germination in dogwood (Brinkman 1974). C. racemosa and C. stolonifera are described by Krefting and Roe (1949) as having "double dormancy", or requiring two periods of stratification for germination. C. stolonifera seeds that were treated first with acids then with cold stratification experienced almost 100% germination, whereas germination was much lower for those seeds receiving cold treatment only. However, seeds of both species that were twice stratified by passage through quail or pheasant gut plus cold treatment also gave relatively low percent germination. The authors suggested that this was due to a large amount of variability in the extent of scarification from the bird gizzards. Some seeds are injured or overstratified in the bird gut and some are left unscathed or understratified (Krefting and Roe 1949). Smith (1975) described C. racemosa as fruiting abundantly but having very low germinability, depending instead on vegetative reproduction to enhance its propagation. Germination tests of scarified and stratified C. drummondii seeds have shown a 25% germination in three samples after 50 days (Brinkman 1974).

Seedling establishment: Some Cornus spp. shrub seedlings are tolerant of variable light intensities, and may become established in woodland edges, within woods, or in open areas (Gatherum et al. 1963, Smith 1975). Seedlings may invade grasslands alone or with other woody plants (McClain pers. comm.).

Asexual reproduction: C. drummondii, C. racemosa, C. stolonifera and C. obliqua reproduce most successfully by vegetative growth following seedling establishment. Thickets may expand by adventitious underground shoot growth or rhizomatous growth (Stephens 1973, Wilson 1965, Smith 1975).

The following is a representative barcode sequence, the centroid of all available sequences for this species.


No available public DNA sequences.

Download FASTA File

Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLDS) Stats
Public Records: 1
Specimens with Barcodes: 1
Species With Barcodes: 1

United States

Rounded National Status Rank: N5 - Secure

Rounded Global Status Rank: G5 - Secure

Please consult the PLANTS Web site and your State Department of Natural Resources for this plant’s current status (e.g. threatened or endangered species, state noxious status, and wetland indicator values).

Comments: Cornus spp. are natural early successional components of many woodland ecosystems in North America. They have many adaptions that enable them to take advantage of open areas, including a large number of seeds, vigorous seedlings and rapid subsequent growth, dispersal by birds, and high tolerance to adverse conditions such as drought and shade (Smith 1975, citing Auclair and Cottam 1971). Rapid and extensive cloning by rhizomatous growth allows dogwood species to create dense thickets which crowd out desired grasses, sedges and forbs, and alter wildlife habitat. Invasion of dogwood, along with other woody species, into prairies and wetlands became more extensive mainly due to the post-settlement decline in wildfires.

Woody plant invasion of floodplains is a concern in some areas, particularly in the western U.S., where stream diversion has greatly reduced the flow in rivers. Water diversion can reduce river flow to the extent that dogwoods and other woody plants invade the floodplain, reducing river channel width and drastically altering wildlife habitat. For example, woody plant invasion, including C. drummondii, willows (Salix spp.), green ash (Fraxinus pensylvanica) and black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia), has reduced channel area of the Platte River in Nebraska by 50-85%, resulting in a loss of up to 97% of the roosting habitat for sandhill and whooping cranes and many other migratory birds (Currier 1987).

This plant has no serious insects and diseases except occasional infestation by scale insects and leaf spot.

None recommended. Plants are not readily available from nurseries.

Plant in moist soils in full sun to partial shade as it is tolerant to wet and/or low fertility soils. It requires little maintenance in naturalized settings. When used for massing, pruning to within a few inches of the ground every few years promotes fullness.

Wildlife: Fruits are eaten by several species of birds including quail, catbirds, mockingbirds, robins, and brown thrashers.

Recreation and Beautification: Excellent landscape tree for its very attractive form and profuse white flowers. Frequently used for massing or naturalizing, screen and border.

Comments: As treated here (following Kartesz, 1994 checklist), Cornus foemina excludes C. asperifolia and C. racemosa, sometimes treated as subspecies of C. foemina (ssp. microcarpa and ssp. racemosa, respectively), and includes C. stricta, sometimes recognized as distinct.