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Native Plant Trust: Go Botany Discover thousands of New England plants

Swida amomum — silky dogwood

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Facts

Look for small hairs on the new, reddish twigs and flower buds of silky dogwood. Snap a twig open and note that the pith is dark brown. This shrub has a rounded crown and can spread rapidly by suckering. Birds eagerly consume the blueish fruits.

Habitat

Meadows and fields, shores of rivers or lakes, swamps, wetland margins (edges of wetlands)

New England distribution

Adapted from BONAP data

Found this plant? Take a photo and post a sighting.

North America distribution

Adapted from BONAP data

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Characteristics

Habitat
  • terrestrial
  • wetlands
New England state
  • Connecticut
  • Maine
  • Massachusetts
  • New Hampshire
  • Rhode Island
  • Vermont
Growth form
the plant is a shrub (i.e., a woody plant with several stems growing from the base)
Leaf type
the leaf blade is simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets)
Leaves per node
there are two leaves per node along the stem
Leaf blade edges
the edge of the leaf blade has no teeth or lobes
Leaf duration
the leaves drop off in winter (or they wither but persist on the plant)
armature on plant
the plant does not have spines, prickles, or thorns
Leaf blade length
60–120 mm
Leaf blade width
30–80 mm
Leaf stalk
the leaves have leaf stalks
Fruit type (general)
the fruit is fleshy
Bark texture
  • the bark of an adult plant is ridged or plated
  • the bark of an adult plant is thin and smooth
Twig winter color
  • brown
  • gray
  • purple
  • red
Bud scale number
there are two scales on the winter bud, and their edges meet
Show all characteristics

  • Buds or leaf scars

    Bud scale number
    there are two scales on the winter bud, and their edges meet
    Bud scar shape (Fraxinus)
    NA
    Collateral buds
    there are no collateral buds on the sides of the branches
    Leaf scar arrangement
    there are two leaf scars per node on the stem or twig
    Superposed buds
    there are no superposed buds on the branch
    Winter bud scale hairs
    the winter bud scales are hairy
    Winter bud scales
    the winter bud is perulate (partially or completely covered with one or more scales)
    Winter bud stalks
    the winter buds have no stalks

  • Flowers

    Anther color
    the anthers show no hint of a pink, reddish or purplish tint
    Carpels fused
    the carpels are fused to one another
    Enlarged sterile flowers
    there are no enlarged sterile flowers on the plant
    Flower petal color
    white
    Flower symmetry
    there are two or more ways to evenly divide the flower (the flower is radially symmetrical)
    Hairs on ovary (Amelanchier)
    NA
    Hypanthium present
    the flower does not have a hypanthium
    Inflorescence type
    the inflorescence is a dichasial cyme (an axis with a terminal flower, below it a pair of branches, each with a terminal flower, these branches may in turn each have a pair of branches and so on)
    Number of pistils
    1
    Ovary position
    the ovary is below the point of petal and/or sepal attachment
    Petal and sepal arrangement
    the flower includes two cycles of petal- or sepal-like structures
    Petal appearance
    the petals are thin and delicate, and pigmented (colored other than green or brown)
    Petal fusion
    the perianth parts are separate
    Sepal cilia (Ilex)
    NA
    Sepal tip glands
    there are no glands at the tips of the sepal lobes
    Sepals fused only to sepals
    the sepals are fused to each other (not other flower parts), at least near their bases
    Stamen number
    4
    Stamen position relative to petals
    the stamens are lined up with the sepals (antesepalous)

  • Fruits or seeds

    Berry color
    • NA
    • blue
    Fruit tissue origin
    there are no flower parts that form part of the fruit
    Fruit type (general)
    the fruit is fleshy
    Fruit type (specific)
    the fruit is a drupe (fleshy, with a firm inner ovary wall that encloses a single seed)
    Nut with spines (Fagaceae)
    NA
    Wings on fruit
    there are no wings on the fruit

  • Glands or sap

    Sap color
    the sap is clear and watery
    Stalked glands on fruit (Rosa)
    NA

  • Growth form

    Growth form
    the plant is a shrub (i.e., a woody plant with several stems growing from the base)

  • Leaves

    Hairs on underside of leaf blade
    the underside of the leaf has hairs on it
    Hairs on upper side of leaf blade
    the upper side of the leaf is not hairy, or has very few hairs
    Leaf blade base shape
    • the base of the leaf blade is cuneate (wedge-shaped, tapers to the base with relatively straight, converging edges), or narrow
    • the base of the leaf blade is rounded
    • the base of the leaf blade is truncate (ends abruptly in a more or less straight line as though cut off)
    Leaf blade base symmetry
    the leaf blade base is symmetrical
    Leaf blade bloom
    the underside of the leaf has no noticeable bloom
    Leaf blade edges
    the edge of the leaf blade has no teeth or lobes
    Leaf blade edges (Acer)
    NA
    Leaf blade flatness
    the leaf is flat (planar) at the edges
    Leaf blade hairs
    at least some of the hairs on the leaf blade are reddish-brown, and they do not have glands
    Leaf blade length
    60–120 mm
    Leaf blade scales
    there are no scales on the leaf blades
    Leaf blade shape
    • the leaf blade is elliptic (widest near the middle and tapering at both ends)
    • the leaf blade is ovate (widest below the middle and broadly tapering at both ends)
    Leaf blade texture
    the leaf blade is herbaceous (has a leafy texture)
    Leaf blade translucent dots
    there are no translucent dots on the leaf blade
    Leaf blade vein pattern
    the main veins of the leaf blade are pinnate (the secondary veins branch off at intervals from the main central vein) and arcuate (slightly arched in the direction of the tip)
    Leaf blade veins
    the leaf blade has one main vein running from the base toward the tip
    Leaf blade width
    30–80 mm
    Leaf duration
    the leaves drop off in winter (or they wither but persist on the plant)
    Leaf form
    the plant is broad-leaved (with broadly flattened leaf blades)
    Leaf lobe tips (Quercus)
    NA
    Leaf midrib glands
    the midrib of the leaf blade lacks glands on the upper surface
    Leaf stalk
    the leaves have leaf stalks
    Leaf stalk attachment to leaf
    the petiole attaches at the basal margin of the leaf blade
    Leaf stalk nectaries
    there are no nectaries on the leaf stalk
    Leaf stalk shape
    the leaf stalk is not flattened
    Leaf teeth
    the edge of the leaf blade is entire (has no teeth or lobes)
    Leaf teeth hairs (Carya)
    NA
    Leaf type
    the leaf blade is simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets)
    Leaves per node
    there are two leaves per node along the stem
    Specific leaf type
    the leaves are simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets
    Stipules
    there are no stipules on the plant, or they fall off as the leaf expands

  • Place

    Habitat
    • terrestrial
    • wetlands
    New England state
    • Connecticut
    • Maine
    • Massachusetts
    • New Hampshire
    • Rhode Island
    • Vermont
    Specific habitat
    • edges of wetlands
    • meadows or fields
    • shores of rivers or lakes
    • swamps

  • Scent

    Plant odor
    the plant does not have much of an odor, or it has an unpleasant or repellant odor

  • Stem, shoot, branch

    Aerial roots
    the plant has no aerial roots
    Bark texture
    • the bark of an adult plant is ridged or plated
    • the bark of an adult plant is thin and smooth
    Branch brittleness (willows only)
    NA
    Branch cross-section
    the branch is circular in cross-section, or it has five or more sides, so that there are no sharp angles
    First-year cane (Rubus)
    NA
    Lenticels on twigs
    there are clearly lenticels on the twigs
    Pith shape
    the outline of the pith in a twig is roughly round
    Pith type
    the pith inside the twig is solid, completely filled with spongy tissue
    Short shoots
    there are no peg- or knob-like shoots present
    Twig bloom
    there is no bloom on the twig
    Twig hairs
    the twigs have hairs, but the hairs do not have glands
    Twig papillae (Vaccinium species only)
    NA
    Twig scales
    there are no scales on the twig surface
    Twig winter color
    • brown
    • gray
    • purple
    • red
    Wings on branch
    the branch does not have wings on it
    armature on plant
    the plant does not have spines, prickles, or thorns

Wetland status

Usually occurs in wetlands, but occasionally in non-wetlands. (Wetland indicator code: FACW)

In New England

Distribution

Connecticut
present
Maine
present
Massachusetts
present
New Hampshire
present
Rhode Island
present
Vermont
present

Conservation status

Exact status definitions can vary from state to state. For details, please check with your state.

var. amomum

Massachusetts
widespread (S-rank: S5)

var. schuetzeana

Massachusetts
fairly widespread (uncertain) (S-rank: S4?)

Subspecies and varieties

Swida amomum (P. Mill.) Small var. amomum is the more common form, known from CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, VT.S. amomum var. schuetzeana (Raf.) A. Haines is known from CT, MA, ME, NH, VT.

From Flora Novae Angliae dichotomous key

2.  Swida amomum (P. Mill.) Small N

silky dogwood. 2a. Cornus amomum P. Mill.;  2b. Cornus amomum P. Mill. ssp. obliqua (Raf.) J.S. Wilson; C. amomum P. Mill. var. schuetzeana (C.A. Mey.) Rickett; C. obliqua Raf.; C. purpusii Koehne; C. sericea L. var. schuetzeana C.A. Mey.; Swida obliqua (Raf.) Moldenke • CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, VT. Swamps, shorelines, low fields, wetland margins.

1a.  Leaf blades mostly 6–12 cm long, ovate to broad-elliptic, 1–2.2 times as long as wide, subtruncate to rounded at the base, with 4–6 pairs of lateral veins, green and usually non-papillose on the abaxial surface, with white or, more commonly, red-brown pubescence 
… 2a. S. amomum var. amomum

1b.  Leaf blades mostly 6–9 cm long, lanceolate to narrow-ovate-oblong, 2.2–4 times as long as wide, cuneate at the base, with 3–5 pairs of lateral veins, usually white and papillose on the abaxial surface, with white or, only rarely, red-brown pubescence 
… 2b. S. amomum var. schuetzeana (C.A. Mey.) A. Haines

Variety amomum is known from CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, VT. Variety schuetzeana is known from CT, MA, ME, NH, VT. It is less common than the preceding variety. This species is sometimes confused with Swida sericea because it frequently produces a red stem.

2b×3.  Swida ×‌arnoldiana (Rehd.) Soják is a very rare dogwood hybrid known from 
the Arnold Arboretum in MA, where it originated spontaneously. It was described as being rather similar to Swida racemosa but with red-purple winter branchlets (instead of gray).

Native to North America?

Yes

Sometimes confused with

Swida racemosa:
pith white or infrequently light brown, style of nearly uniform diameter throughout, and sepals shorter than 1 mm (vs. S. amomum, with pith of branchlets brown, style conspicuously widened in the apical portion, and sepals 1–2 mm long).
Swida sericea:
pith of branchlets white, fruit usually white, and style slender throughout (vs. S. amomum, with the pith of branchlets brown, fruit usually blue, and style conspicuously widened near apex).

Synonyms

  • Cornus amomum P. Mill. ssp. obliqua (Raf.) J.S. Wilson
  • Cornus amomum var. schuetzeana (C.A. Mey.) Rickett
  • Cornus obliqua Raf.
  • Cornus purpusii Koehne
  • Cornus sericea var. schuetzeana C.A. Mey.
  • Swida obliqua (Raf.) Moldenke

Family

Cornaceae

Genus

Swida