Sep
3
Dogwood Tree Berries/Fruit
From our yard
November 2, 2007 at 2.07pm CDT
Camera: Pentax K10D
Exposure: 0.006 sec (1/180)
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 300 mm
ISO Speed: 100
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September 3rd, 2008 at 12:08 pm
They are beautiful. Great photography.
Are they edible? Are they known by any other name?
September 3rd, 2008 at 3:11 pm
Thanks!
The scientific name is cornus florida. The fruit, while loved by birds, is apparently poisonous to humans.
September 3rd, 2008 at 4:02 pm
Poisonous to humans, eh? Nyah ha ha… Would they just leave such beautiful things growing all over if they could kill you? How many would it take to kill someone I wonder? (No particular reason, just curious…really…)
September 3rd, 2008 at 4:14 pm
Hi Mike - they look a lot like some berries we have here called rosehips. They have little seeds inside of them. Some folk make sauce with them but it’s sickly stuff.
September 3rd, 2008 at 4:23 pm
@ XUP — I wondered that myself when I looked it up.., but it’d probably just make someone sick.
@Cath Lawson — from my understanding, rose hips are the fruit of roses. The one’s we see most prominently here are from wild roses… and they do look very similar. We also saw some similar berries in Wyoming last year that were called Buffalo Berries.
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:06 pm
Nice sharp photo, Mike. This one is very pretty.
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:40 pm
Thanks, teeni.
The rain has about ended and we’re about ready to hit the road!
September 24th, 2008 at 7:54 pm
I found your picture and it is exactly what my dogwood looks like, I did not know that they would bear fruit. However, I am wondering if they are getting ready to flower? They white bloom looking thing, what is that? Will this tree bloom in the fall after a bloom in the spring?
September 24th, 2008 at 9:15 pm
Shay - No, it only blooms once a year. That white thing may be the remnants of the actual flower bud. See http://plants.usda.gov/plantguide/pdf/pg_cofl2.pdf which says “Key characteristics of flowering dogwood are its opposite leaves with arcuate venation, large showy flowers (bracts), onion-shaped terminal flower buds, and alligator bark on mature trees.”