=Leaves=.—Alternate, or sometimes opposite, clustered at the ends of the limbs, ovate, taper-pointed, acute at base, entire, whitish and minutely pubescent beneath.
=Flowers=.—April-May; cream-colored, small, borne in broad open cymes.
=Fruit=.—Matures in autumn; a deep blue spherical drupe, about one-third inch in diameter, on reddish stalks, in cymose clusters.
=Bark=.—Smooth or slightly roughened by longitudinal fissures on old trunks. The smooth bark of branches is greenish.
=Wood=.—Hard, heavy, tough, close-grained, brown tinged with red.
=Range=.—Nova Scotia to Alabama, west to Minnesota.
=Distribution in West Virginia=.—Found principally along the Alleghanies and westward. Not common in the eastern part of the State.
=Habitat=.—Prefers stream borders, cool ravines, and moist rich soils of hillsides.
=Notes=.—No uses are reported for the wood of the Alternate-leaved Dogwood. Whether in bloom or in fruit the tree is very attractive in appearance.
=Form=.—Height 40-100 feet, diameter 2-4 feet; trunk usually long, clear and straight when in close stands; crown cylindrical or rounded, of numerous horizontal and ascending slender branches.
=Leaves=.—Alternate, simple, 2-5 inches long, oval-obovate; acuminate, entire, firm, dark green and shining above, paler beneath, often hairy when young.
=Flowers=.—April-May; polygamo-dioecious; greenish, the staminate borne in many-flowered small heads on slender pedicels, the pistillate sessile in several-flowered clusters.
=Fruit=.—Matures in autumn; an ovoid, blue-black, fleshy drupe, about ½ inch long and borne on long stalks in clusters of 1-3.
=Bark=.—Deeply furrowed, on old trunks, the ridges broken into rectangular or hexagonal blocks; light brown to gray-black.
=Wood=.—Heavy, soft, strong, tough, difficult to split, not durable in the soil, light yellow, with thick whitish sapwood.
=Range=.—Maine and Ontario to Florida and Texas.
=Distribution in West Virginia=.—A common tree throughout the State. Least common at high elevations and east of the Alleghanies.
=Habitat=.—Thrives best on low ground and borders of swamps, but is common on dry slopes and ridges.
=Notes=.—Black Gum, also called Tupelo, Pepperidge, and Sour Gum, is one of the less valuable of our forest trees, but its tough, light wood is gaining in value and is used extensively for wheel hubs, boxes, broom handles, wagon beds, ladders, ironing boards, rolling pins, excelsior, baskets, and berry crates.