Sorbus chamaemespilus
| Sorbus chamaemespilus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Rosids |
| Order: | Rosales |
| Family: | Rosaceae |
| Genus: | Sorbus |
| Subgenus: | Chamaemespilus |
| Species: | S. chamaemespilus |
| Binomial name | |
| Sorbus chamaemespilus (L.) Crantz | |
Sorbus chamaemespilus, the false medlar or dwarf whitebeam, is a species of Sorbus native to the mountains of central and southern Europe, from the Pyrenees east through the Alps to the Carpathians and the Balkans, growing at altitudes of up to 2500 m.[1]
Description
It is a deciduous shrub growing to 2–3 m tall. The leaves are spirally arranged, oval-elliptic, 3–7 cm long, with an acute apex and a serrated margin; they are green on both sides, without the white felting found on most whitebeams. The flowers are pink, with five forward-pointing petals 5–7 mm long; they are produced in corymbs 3–4 cm diameter. The fruit is an oval red pome 10–13 mm diameter.[1][2]
It is the sole species in the subgenus Chamaemespilus, distinguished from other subgenera of Sorbus by the pink (not white) flowers with the forward-pointing petals (not opening flat).[2]