Dogwood by Redoute Botanical Art Print

An archival premium Quality Botanical Art Print of the Dogwood by Redoute for sale by Brandywine General Store. The French Botanical artist produced this print for the massive book, The Sylva of North America, a tome which was paid for by the French government to study the trees and fauna of the New World to see if any of these trees should be introduced into France and Europe. The author was Francois Andre Michaux with many illustrations by Redoute. This picture shows two separate branches of the Dogwood, one had two blooms while the other branch shows the red berries that come after the blooming. The Dogwood was described thus, This tree is first seen in the North in the state of Massachusetts and is found to the South and also in the eastern and western districts. The dogwood prefers a soil that is moist, gravelly and mostly uneven. Over the extent of the whole large country the dogwood is one of the most common trees of the vast American forests. With the beauty of the numerous flowers and the red berries that follow afterwards, renders this tree one of the fairest ornaments of the United States Forest. Even though the berries are very bitter tasting, they attract many birds which eat the berries through the winter. Generally grows to 18 to 20 feet in height with a diameter of 4 to 5 inches. The wood in compact, heavy and fine grained and takes on a brilliant shine or polish. The sap is white and the heart is a chocolate color. The lumber can not be used in jobs requiring mass volumes because of the small size, but it is used in small tools such as mallets, small vices, harrow teeth, hames for horse collars, linings for sledges and etc. It also makes an excellent fuel but is to small to haul to the markets in the city. The Liber, or interior bark, is extremely bitter and proves and excellent remedy in intermitting fevers. The bark also makes an excellent ink. The author thinks the Dogwood merits the attention of the Europeans for the value of the wood, but especially for the beauty of the flowers for use in parks and extensive gardens. Cornus Florida. Botanical art print #104