Cornus sanguinea Dogwood

A shrub which grows up to 4m in height with broad, oval-elliptic leaves that occur in opposite pairs. It occurs as two subspecies in Britain, ssp. sanguinea and ssp. australis. Both produce purplish-black berries which will distinguish them from Cornus alba and Cornus sericea. Cornus sanguinea ssp. sanguinea is a native shrub of base rich soils and is a frequent component of the limestone woodland and coastal scub communities in Gower. It is less common in other parts of West Glamorgan but occurs occasionally in coastal areas of Neath Port Talbot. Cornus sanguinea ssp. australis is a commonly planted, non-native subspecies that is often confused with the native form. In West Glamorgan, most if not all inland records outside Gower, in the South Wales Coalfield, are Cornus sanguinea ssp. australis.

Native (ssp. sanguinea) and neophyte (ssp. australis)