Flower Friday: Dogwood

Dogwood

Today's featured flowers are from one of my favorite flowering trees - dogwood!  The four pink 'petals' are not actually flowers at all.  They are bracts (modified leaves).  The actual dogwood flowers grow in tiny yellowish clusters in the center of the showy pink bracts.  Some types of dogwood trees flower before their green leaves come in, while others (like ours) put on a colorful display of bracts after the green leaves are already in.  Dogwood trees grow quickly, stay fairly small, and provide a beautiful bursts of pink or white "flowers" each spring.  The "flowers" are about four inches across and appear in groups.  Ours is one of the later bloomers,  and is covered in bright pink bracts right now.  Birds seem to love the little fruits on this tree, and the leaves turn a lovely reddish burgundy color in the fall.  It is a low-maintenance tree that likes acidic soil and grows well in partial shade.  You can learn more about dogwood trees on About Dogwoods and Gardening Know How's dogwood page.

A few book and blogosphere updates:

1.  Novel Novice is celebrating the June 10th debut of Heidi R. Kling's Sea all this month.  You can stop by and share one of your own travel stories to have a chance at winning a copy of Sea.  That giveaway ends June 30th, and you can learn more about it here. 

2..  You can visit Fallen Archangel to read an excerpt from Becca Fitzpatrick's Crescendo, the sequel to Hush, Hush which is due to hit stores October 19th.  Join Becca Fitzpatrick for a live chat on Tuesday, June 8th at 9 pm EST at Fallen Archangel.

3.  Lisa Mantchev, the author of Eyes Like Stars and Perchance to Dream, will be chatting with the Mundie Moms that same evening.  You can stop by the Mundie Moms blog on June 8th at 9 pm EST to join in on the chat.

4.  Cassandra Clare shared a short excerpt from City of Fallen Angels yesterday.  Have I mentioned that I can not wait to read that book?!  The excerpt is from an Alec/Magnus scene.  Cassandra tweeted the excerpt using twishort and you can read it here.