“You can always tell a dogwood by its bark”

Dogs bark. Trees have bark. An old joke is told about the flowering dogwood tree.
   
“Dog-wood, says the New York Star, may readily be distinguished by its peculiar bark” was printed in the Pittsburgh (PA) Morning Post on October 18, 1845. “Dog-wood, an eminent author observes, may readily be distinguished by its peculiar bark” was printed in the Woolmer’s Exeter and Plymouth Gazette (Exeter, UK) on February 7, 1846. “You can always tell a dogwood by its bark” was printed in The Kansas Democrat (Independence, KS) on September 5, 1872,
   
“How can you tell if a tree is a dogwood tree? By its bark!” was posted on the newsgroup alt.humor.puns on August 17, 2004. “How can you tell it’s a dogwood tree? By the bark” was posted on Reddit—Cleanjokes on June 2, 2022.
   
   
Wikipedia: Cornus florida
Cornus florida, the flowering dogwood, is a species of flowering tree in the family Cornaceae native to eastern North America and northern Mexico. An endemic population once spanned from southernmost coastal Maine south to northern Florida and west to the Mississippi River. The tree is commonly planted as an ornamental in residential and public areas because of its showy bracts and interesting bark structure.
         
Newspapers.com
18 October 1845, Pittsburgh (PA) Morning Post, pg. 3, col. 1:
Dog-wood, says the New York Star, may readily be distinguished by its peculiar bark.
 
Newspapers.com
7 February 1846, Woolmer’s Exeter and Plymouth Gazette (Exeter, UK), pg. 4, col. 5:
VARIETIES.
Dog-wood, an eminent author observes, may readily be distinguished by its peculiar bark,
     
Google Books
Newspapers.com
25 February 1846, New-England Farmer (Boston, MA), pg. 5, col. 3:
Dog-wood, says an eminent author, may readily be distinguished by its peculiar bark.
 
Newspapers.com
26 February 1846, The Indiana State Sentinel (Indianapolis, IN), pg. 5, col. 4:
Dog-wood, observes an eminent author, may be readily distinguished by its peculiar bark.
 
Google Books   
1 September 1848, Boys’ and Girls’ Magazine and Fireside Companion (Boston, MA), “Autumn,” pg. 91:
A witty person was once asked what the difference was between a dog and a dogwood. One is known by its bark, the other by his bite, immediately answered the wit.
   
Newspapers.com
9 April 1849, The Daily Crescent (New Orleans, LA), “Odds and Ends,” pg. 1, col. 6:
Trees-on.—“This tree is known by its fruit.” The only exception to this is the dog-wood, which is known by its bark.
         
Newspapers.com
5 September 1872, The Kansas Democrat (Independence, KS), pg. 2, col. 4:
You can always tell a dogwood by its bark.
 
Newspapers.com
1 December 1880, Indiana (PA) Weekly Messenger, pg. 3, col .1:
You can tell a dogwood by its bark.
 
Google Books
The New Pun Book:
Collected, Edited and Arranged from the Notes of Two Learned Pundits
By T. B. and T. C.
New York, NY: Carey-Stafford Company
1906
Pg. 23:
GUIDE — This is a dogwood tree.
STRANGER — How can you tell?
GUIDE - By its bark.
 
Google Books
April 1943, Boys’ Life, “Think and Grin” edited by Frank Rigney, pg. 39, col. 1:
ELBOW ROOM
Farmer: This is a dogwood tree.
Tourist: How can you tell?
Farmer: By its bark.
       
Google Groups: rec.humor
Joke for young kids
.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Mar 15, 1995, 1:16:18 AM
RI>How can you tell a dogwood tree?
RI>By its bark!!
 
Arf arf!
 
Google Groups: alt.humor.puns
Kids Puns of the Weak 08-17-04
Stan Kegel
Aug 17, 2004, 3:49:08 PM
(...)
How can you tell if a tree is a dogwood tree?
By its bark! (Breonna, 10)
 
Twitter
Gwinnett tree guys
@treeguys
How can you tell if a tree is a dogwood?  By its bark
5:43 PM · Oct 22, 2009·Twitter Web Client
 
Reddit—Dadjokes
Posted by u/mgannett October 4, 2015
How can you distinguish a dogwood from other trees?
By the Bark.
   
Googel Books
Srsly Best Jokes Ever:
Jokes for Kids
By Chantelle Grace
Racine, WI: BroadStreet Kids
2017
Pg. ?:
How can you tell that a tree is a dogwood tree?
By its bark.
 
Reddit—Dadjokes
Posted by u/Slit23 October 15, 2019
How can you tell if a tree is dogwood?
By it’s bark.
   
Reddit—Dadjokes
Posted by u/ahhyeaaa June 3, 2020
How can you identify a dogwood tree?
By its bark!
 
Reddit—Dadjokes
Posted by u/coolidiot2000 May 13, 2022
Dad: How can you tell it’s a dogwood tree.
Kid: I dunno.
Dad: By the bark.
 
Reddit—Cleanjokes
Posted by u/Raw_Rain June 2, 2022
How can you tell it’s a dogwood tree?
By the bark