The LEAVES are simple, ovate or oblong in shape, acute and often long-pointed. When mature they are thick, dark green and lustrous on the upper side, pale and somewhat downy on the lower side, 5 to 7 inches long and 2 to 4 inches wide, wedge-shaped at the base, and entire or irregularly toothed on the margin. The petiole is stout, 1 to 2 inches long, grooved, and enlarged at the base. The FLOWERS, which appear in March or April are of two kinds, usually borne on separate trees, the male flowers in dense round clusters, and the female flowers solitary. The FRUIT, ripening in early fall, is a dark purple drupe, oblong or obovate in shape, about 1 inch long, with a thick, tough skin enclosing a flattened stone, and borne on a slender peduncle 3 to 4 inches long. The WOOD is light, soft, and not strong. It is used for woodenware, broom handles, fruit and vegetable baskets, marketed as tupelo or bay poplar lumber, and paper pulp. FLOWERING DOGWOOD Cornus florida L. Dogwood grows in the forests of eastern Texas, usually under the larger forest trees. It is a small tree, up to 30 feet high and 12 inches in diameter, occasionally larger, with a rather flat and spreading crown and short, often crooked trunk. [Illustration: FLOWERING DOGWOOD (Leaf and fruit, one-half natural size; twig, two-thirds natural size)] The BARK is reddish-brown to black and broken up into small 4-sided, scaly blocks. The LEAVES are opposite, ovate, 3 to 5 inches long, 2 to 3 inches wide, pointed, entire or wavy on the margin, prominently veined, bright green above, pale green or grayish beneath. The FLOWERS, which unfold from the conspicuous, round, grayish, winter flower buds before the leaves come out, are small, greenish-yellow, arranged in dense heads surrounded by large white or pinkish petal-like bracts, which appear like large spreading flowers 2 to 4 inches across. The FRUIT is a bright scarlet drupe one-half an inch long and containing a hard, two-celled nutlet containing 1 or 2 seeds. Usually several fruits are contained in one head, and are relished by birds, squirrels, and other animals. The WOOD is hard, heavy, strong, close-grained, and brown to red in color. It is in demand for cotton-mill machinery, turnery, handles, and forms. With its masses of early spring flowers, its dark red autumn foliage, and bright red berries, dogwood is probably our most ornamental native tree. It should be used more extensively in eastern Texas for ornamental planting. TREE SPARKLEBERRY (Farkleberry) Vaccinium arboreum Marsh.