THE STATUS OF FLOWERING DOGWOOD IN 5 LONG-TERM FOREST PLOTS IN CONNECTICUT

Long-term forest plots were established by The Connecticut Agricultura l Experiment Station in 1927 and were censused in 1937, 1957, 1967, 19 77, and 1987. The number of native flowering dogwood trees declined sl owly as the forests matured, going from a total of 661 in 1927 to a to tal of 603 in 1977. Between 1977 and 1987, the total number of living dogwood trees declined by 86% to 82, in marked contrast to the change in numbers of other species in the subcanopy. No ''edge-effect'' was f ound, with mortality higher in the forest than along forest edges as r eported by others. The death of the dogwoods was not correlated with m oisture class of the sites, or age or growth rate of the trees themsel ves.