Question: I live in the Boston area and need some help identifying a tree growing in my back yard (two specimens, …
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Question
I live in the Boston area and need some help identifying a tree growing in my back yard (two specimens, and I have seen one other in conservation land). See images for what it looks like now (summer). Leaf arrangement seems alternate, and the leaves are arranged in pairs. In the spring of 2014 both trees had magnificent white flowers (single flowers, not in clusters). However, this spring we didn't see any. In winter the leaf scars protrude and look a little like flower buds. Bark is scaly.
Answer
Dear yigalagam, the plant is likely a species of Benthamidia (big-bracted-dogwood). These species were formerly placed in the genus Cornus and were called flowering dogwoods. I can't tell for certain without flowers or fruits, but it looks like Benthamidia florida (flowering big-bracted-dogwood), which is a native species.
