GreenwoodGardens

A Beautiful Dogwood

Two dogwood trees with magnificent "flowers" flank the stairs leading from the main terrace down to the reflecting pool terrace. It is impossible to miss the beautiful white bracts covering the tree when it is in "bloom".

Dogwood flowers are actually very small and located at the center of the white or pale pink bracts that look flower-like on the trees. And the bracts on these trees, Cornus 'Kn30 8' VENUS, are eye-catching. This wonderful tree was introduced by renowned plant breeder, Elwin Orton, professor emeritus of plant biology and pathology at Rutgers University. In 2012, Professor Orton was inducted into the NJ Inventors Hall of Fame for his work developing "new strains of hardy, disease- and pest-resistant hybrid dogwoods when diseases and insects threatened the native species of the popular flowering tree." You can read more about his contributions to plant biology and horticulture in this link to Rutger's website.

You must click on the photo to view these beauties in a better, larger photo.

Missouri Botanical Garden gives this description of this appealing, small tree that will fit in many home gardens: "VENUS is a hybrid dogwood (Cornus kousa 'Chinensis' x Cornus nuttalii Goldspot' x Cornus kousa 'Rosea') that was developed by Elwin R. Orton, Jr. as part of the Jersey Star series of dogwoods released by Rutgers University. It is noted for its vigorous habit, large-bracted flowers, profuse bloom and resistance to anthracnose and powdery mildew. It is a small deciduous tree with a dense, low-branched, spreading habit and is stated by the inventors to be more vigorous than current known cultivars of Cornus kousa. It has superior foliage and large flowers. U. S. Plant Patent PP16,309 was issued on March 7, 2006."

Let's Plant a Tree

by Aileen Fisher

It’s time to plant a tree, a tree.
What shall it be? What shall it be?

Let’s plant a pine—we can’t go wrong:
a pine is green the whole year long.

Let’s plant a maple—more than one,
to shade us from the summer sun.

Let’s plant a cherry—you know why:
there’s nothing like a cherry pie!

Let’s plant an elm, the tree of grace,
where robins find a nesting place.

Let’s plant an apple—not too small,
with flowers in spring and fruit in fall.

Let’s plant a fir—so it can be
a lighted outdoor Christmas tree.

Let’s plant a birch, an oak, a beech,
there’s something extra-nice in each…
in winter, summer, spring or fall.
Let’s plant a …

why not plant them ALL?

Read more about the poet Aileen Fisher,
whose poems for children were filled with a love of nature: http://bit.ly/1il3fr7

Winter Color in the Garden

Click on the photo to view larger

Rain drops shine like jewels on the brilliant red branches of "Coral Bark "Japanese Maples (Acer palmatum 'Sango-kaku') on a mild winter day.

In spring, the new leaves are yellow-green edged with red. By summer, the leaves have turned a medium green. By late October through mid-November, the leaves turn to gold: