I encounter very few alternate leaved dogwoods around here. If I do see one, it is usually the variegated giant dogwood. I saw this one today and believe it to be the pagoda dogwood. My question is twofold; What is the correct id, and how would I know for sure?
C. alternifolia Leaf length 2-6 in. Leaf width to 3 1/4 in. Leaf vein pairs 5-6 Leaf stems to 5 in. long Flower clusters 1 1/2-2 1/2 in. across C. controversa Leaf length 3-6 1/2 in. Leaf width to 4 1/2 in. Leaf vein pairs 6-9 Leaf stems to 5 in. long Flower clusters 3-7 in. across Ref: A. L. Jacobson, North American Landscape Trees (1996, Ten Speed Press, Berkeley)
Big-looking flower-heads and overall appearance of bigness = C. controversa. C. alternifolia is not particularly robust in aspect. Since you were on the site, you would be better able to compare it with the above dimensions - note in particular how small the flower clusters of C. alternifolia are.
Ron, my first guess was C. controversa, as well. I had a sample from some pruning to bring back with me but it was inadvertently chipped! (Very hard to id plants after they have passed through a brush chipper.) I posted some photos on FB as well, while I was on site and a couple of arborists from the east coast suggested C. alternifolia.After zooming in on some photos and counting leaf vein pairs; every leaf I saw had six so I am inclined towards C. controversa as well. It was a very nice little tree to find in the yard. BTW, I was hoping you would see this. You, ALJ, and BVP are perhaps the best resources in the PNW for plant id. Thanks to this forum, you are the easiest to query. Thanks!
