A splash of colour!

Kingdom: Plantae

Family: Cornaceae

Species: Cornus sanguinea

One of the most brightly coloured shrubs growing around the UEA broad is the red dogwood. Dogwoods produce creamy white flowers in the spring, followed by blue/white berries with dark green leaves, which redden in autumn. The leaves then fall to reveal beautifully brightly coloured stems due to being a deciduous species. They are an independent species, and need very little management although coppicing should take place every February/March, cutting them down to a woody base within 4” of the ground before they bud. They need full sun to partial shade and are in a good location for sunlight next to the UEA broad, in an area that has few trees to obscure sunlight. They most often grow on the margins of woodland so they fit right in! They aren’t fussy about their soil conditions and can grow in damp soil, which is usually where they grow if wild. They are wildly sold as plants for people to plant in their gardens too, usually to add colour in winter. Their flowers are hermaphrodite and are small at around 5-10 millimetres in diameter and are insect pollinated. They produce a black berry fruit containing a single seed, called "dogberries".

This species of dogwood is native to most of Europe and Western Asia. Its leaves provide food for some animals, and dogberries are eaten by some mammals and many birds. Other species of dogwood are native to North America and Eastern Asia, where they have been traditionally used for a variety of purposes. Native Americans use the inner bark in tobacco mixtures in their sacred pipe ceremony. Some tribes eat the sour berries (usually eaten by birds – up to 18 species) to treat colds and to slow bleeding, whereas others made arrow shafts and tools from the branches and shoots due to the wood being so hard. This lead to the origin of the name “dogwood” – this has nothing to do with dogs, instead it originated from an old word “dag” which refers to a sharp tool. The leaves, bark and roots were also used to make medicine, and it is widely used for basket weaving. If bark is gathered in early spring, it retains its deep red colour when dried.