Cornaceae dogwood family Cornus florida flowering dogwood Sight ID characteristics Vegetative Features: Leaf: 2 1/2-5" long, simple, opposite, deciduous, elliptical to ovate with arcuate venation and an entire margin. Bark: broken into small brown-black plates on mature trees. Form: usually as several wide-spreading branches with a low dense crown opposite branching gives candelabra form. Reproductive Features: Few, small, perfect, 4-parted flowers with inferior ovaries arranged in heads subtended by 4 notched, showy, white-pink bracts. Fruits are oval shaped drupes in heads of 5-6, red at maturity, with oval grooved stone. 123
NOTES AND SKETCHES 124
Cornaceae dogwood family Cornus nuttallii Pacific dogwood Sight ID characteristics Vegetative Features: Leaf: 2 1/2-4 1/2" long, simple, opposite, deciduous, ovateelliptical with arcuate venation, margin may be sparsely toothed or entire. Bark: dark and broken into small plates at maturity. Form: straight trunk and narrow crown in forested conditions, many-trunked and bushy in open. Reproductive Features: Many yellowish-green, small, perfect, 4-parted flowers with inferior ovaries arranged in dense in heads, subtended by 4-7 showy whitepink, petal-like bracts - not notched at the apex. Fruits are drupes in heads of 30-40, red at maturity and they have smooth stones. 125
NOTES AND SKETCHES 126
Cornaceae dogwood family Cornus sericea red-osier dogwood Sight ID characteristics Vegetative Features: Leaf: 2-4" long, simple, opposite, deciduous and somewhat narrow ovate-lanceolate with entire margin. Twig: bright red, sometimes green splotched with red, white pith. Bark: red to green with numerous lenticels; later developing larger cracks and splits and turning light brown. Form: small to medium sized shrub with numerous stems forming thickets up to 15! tall. Reproductive Features: Flowers small, perfect, 4-parted, inferior ovary, dull-white inflorescences about 2 inches across. Fruit a dull white to blueish drupe, 1/4 to 1/3 inch in diameter in rounded clusters. 127
NOTES AND SKETCHES 128
Hydrangeaceae Hydrangea family Philadelphus lewisii mockorange (Syringa) Sight ID characteristics Vegetative Features: Leaf: opposite, simple, deciduous, ovate, 1-3 long, green above and paler below, margins nearly entire with a few glandular teeth on each side - (passes the Cornus test so beware!) Twig: slender, opposite, tan, and widely dichotomous. Bark: light brown and shreddy. Form: small to medium sized shrub with numerous stems forming thickets up to 15! tall. Reproductive Features: Flowers perfect, 4-petals and numerous stamens, inferior ovary, showy, white, solitary or clustered, about 1 inch in diameter, fragrant. Fruit small, brown, hard, 4-celled capsule, " in diameter. 129
NOTES AND SKETCHES 130
Oleaceae the olive family Fraxinus pennsylvanica green ash Sight ID characteristics Vegetative Features: Leaf: pinnately compound, opposite, 6-10" long, with 7-9 lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate or elliptical leaflets. Leaves are glabrous to pubescent (lots of variation). Twig: slender, opposite, tan, and widely dichotomous. Bark: grayish brown and tightly furrowed. Form: medium sized tree, 30-50' tall and 1-2' diameter at maturity. Reproductive Features: Dioecious, apetalous, male flowers in tight clusters, female flowers in panicles. Fruits are narrow, oblanceolate samaras ca. 1 1/4-2 1/4" long borne in loose panicles. Persistent on tree throughout winter. 131
NOTES AND SKETCHES 132
Oleaceae the olive family Syringa vulgaris lilac Sight ID characteristics Vegetative Features: Leaf: simple, opposite, deciduous, 2 6 long, ovate to cordate, with pinnate venation, a acute to acuminate apex and an entire margin. Twig: slender, opposite, tan, and widely dichotomous. Bark: gray to gray-brown, smooth on young stems, furrowed and flaking on older stems. Form: medium to large shrub or multi-stemmed small tree to 30! Reproductive Features: Flowers tubular, ca. 1 long, 4 petal lobes, usually lilac to mauve, occasionally white, arranged in a dense, terminal panicle. Fruit a capsule, 1 2 cm long, splitting in two to release the two winged seeds. 133
NOTES AND SKETCHES 134