Question
Where did Dogwoods (Cornus florida) originate from ? I thought they were introduced to Europe from Asia, then brought to North America, but most sources list them as native or indigenous to North America.

Answer
Origins
The 65 species of dogwood are native to the Northern Hemisphere. The genus was named by Linnaeus in the eighteenth century but was known and used centuries earlier. Cornus mas, the Cornelian cherry, a native of central and southern Europe and western Asia, was first described in 1551. The North American native, Cornus florida, long known to the Native Americans, was first exported to England about 1740. In 1875, Cornus kousa, the Korean kousa dogwood, was introduced to England, having been discovered in Japan.



Flowering dogwoods Cornus florida, can be found in eastern deciduous forests as far north as Maine, extending west to eastern Texas and Missouri.

The common name, dogwood, comes from England. Years ago, people there used the bark of the bloodtwig dogwood (Cornus sanguinea) to bathe mangy dogs. On this continent, flowering dogwood has been used by Native Americans to make scarlet dyes and tinctures. Although the fruits are poisonous to humans, in the late 1700s, colonists made a tea from dogwood bark to reduce fevers and soothe colds. The wood of the dogwood tree is used today to make small tools and ornaments. It has been under cultivation in North America since the 1730s. Today, flowering dogwoods are popular landscaping trees. They are slow growing (often only a few centimeters per year in dense shade), resilient, and beautiful as an accent plant.