Starlight dogwood
The dogwoods are blooming! Now that the leaves on the trees have turned the forest green, the white and pink blooms of Crystal Bridges’ dogwoods really pop! Here on the grounds of Crystal Bridges, we feature no fewer than eight species of dogwood trees for your spring enjoyment, so don’t miss this spectacular annual spring celebration!
Flowering dogwoods at Crystal Bridges. Photo by Stephen Ironside
The most common dogwood on our grounds is the native blooming dogwood, Cornus florida. These can be seen lighting up the forest throughout the grounds, but most notably in the woods north and east of the Museum. The trails in the north forest are closed at present, but you can still see these trees blooming from Museum Way as you enter the grounds.
The “blooms” that you see are actually “brachts,” a set of white leaves that surround the small, yellow and green blossom at their center.
Photo by Stephen Ironside
In addition, there are several species of dogwood “cultivars” found at Crystal Bridges. These are species that have been cultivated to enhance specific qualities in the blooms. For instance:
The Venus cultivar creates huge white blossoms, as large as your hand. These bloom a bit later than the others, and you’ll find them along the upper sidewalk from the Frank Lloyd Wright house to the South Lawn.
Venus dogwood
Stellar Pink offers sweetly pink-tinged brachts. You’ll see these along the switch-back trails, and along the steps down to the Museum’s south lawn.
Stellar Pink dogwood
Cherokee Princess produces big, waxy white blossoms. These trees can be found along the north side of the upper parking deck, near the Orchard Trail.
Cherokee Princess
The Constellation dogwood features large white blossoms with brachts that do not overlap. Look for these on the south switchback trail from the lower parking area down toward the South Lawn.
Constellation dogwood
National dogwoods have greenish blooms with pointed brachts. These can be seen on the South Lawn.
National dogwood
Starlight dogwoods have large, abundant, creamy-white brachts with slightly pointed tips. You will see these trees blooming as you make the turn from the upper parking lot to the lower.
Starlight dogwood
Cherokee Brave is an eye-catching spicy pink bloomer. You can get a close look at these along the creek on the South Lawn. Be sure to visit Crystal Briges’ grounds soon! This show won’t last!
© 2016 Stephen Ironside/Ironside Photography