(Sorbus torminalis (L.) Crantz)
Habitus
- it is a tree up to 20 - 25 m high, crown is widely spread, branches are thick
- bark is red-brown to dark brown, initially longitudinally fissured – margins diverge from the trunk
- bork is grey-brown, finely scaly fissured
Buds
- buds are arranged in a spiral, broadly ovate to spherical, sessile, 6 - 10 x 5 - 7 mm in size
- covering scales are round, green with a brown edge
Shoots
- shoots are round, straight, greenish brown to reddish brown, tomentose when young
- older ones are greyish brown, glabrous, lenticels are light
Leaves (assimilation organs)
- leaves simple, pinnately lobed with 3 - 4 pairs of lobes, the lower lobe is the largest - almost perpendicular to the midrib
- they are broadly ovate in outline
- they are rounded, truncate, or even cordate at the base
- the petiole is sparsely tomentose, 2 - 5 cm long
Flowers
- it is a monoecious tree, flowers are bisexual, white in tufted panicles
- it blooms from May to June
Fruits – seeds
- the fruit is an ellipsoid to pear-shaped drupe, brown, lightly spotted, leathery, 12 - 15 x 8 - 12 mm in size, it contains from 2 to 4 seeds
- it ripens in September
Extension
- originally in Central and Southern Europe
- in Slovakia it grows in hilly areas, sparse oak forests, in forest-steppes from the lowest positions to about 600 (800) m above the sea level
- it grows in warm, dry habitats together with oaks, pear trees, mountain ash, lindens and many other thermophilic shrubs
Ecology
- it is a light-loving woody plant, it tolerates slight shading when young
- it is not sensitive to frost or high temperatures
Significance
- it is decorative with leaves in autumn when changing color, but also with fruits and flowers
- soil-protective
