''Mespilus canescens'', commonly known as Stern's medlar, is a large

shrub A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...

or small

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...

, recently discovered in

Prairie County, Arkansas Prairie County is in the Central Arkansas region of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The county is named for the Grand Prairie, a subregion of the Arkansas Delta known for rice cultivation and aquaculture that runs through the county. Created as Ar ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, and formally named in 1990. It is a critically endangered

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

species, with only 25 plants known, all in one small (9 ha) wood, now protected as the Konecny Grove Natural Area. It has been shown by genetic analysis to be closely related to the common medlar ''

Mespilus germanica ''Mespilus germanica'', known as the medlar or common medlar, is a large shrub or small tree in the rose family Rosaceae. The fruit of this tree, also called medlar, has been cultivated since Roman times, is usually available in winter and eate ...

'', which was previously the only known species in the genus. Subsequent molecular analyses suggest that Stern's medlar is likely a hybrid between cultivated ''M. germanica'' and one or two native North American species of ''

Crataegus ''Crataegus'' (), commonly called hawthorn, quickthorn, thornapple, Voss, E. G. 1985. ''Michigan Flora: A guide to the identification and occurrence of the native and naturalized seed-plants of the state. Part II: Dicots (Saururaceae–Cornacea ...

''.Lo, E.Y.Y., Stefanovic, S., Dickinson, T.A., 2007. Molecular reappraisal of relationships between ''Crataegus'' and ''Mespilus'' (Rosaceae, Pyreae) – two genera or one? ''Systematic Botany'' 32: 596–616.

Description

Thorns are sparse, long.Phipps, J.B. 1990. ''Mespilus canescens'', a new rosaceous endemic from Arkansas. ''Systematic Botany'' 15: 26-32. The

leaves A leaf (plural, : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant plant stem, stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", wh ...

are long. The five-petalled white

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

s are produced in late spring. The

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

is an almost spherical

pome In botany, a pome is a type of fruit produced by flowering plants in the subtribe Malinae of the family Rosaceae. Well-known pomes include the apple, pear, and quince. Etymology The word ''pome'' entered English in the late 14th century, and re ...

, diameter; it differs from common medlar fruit in being deep glossy red when ripe (not brown).

References

External links

Center for Plant Conservation: ''Mespilus canescens''
* Phipps, J.B., Weeden, N.F., & Dickson, E.E. 1991. Isozyme evidence for the naturalness of ''Mespilus'' L. (Rosaceae, subfam. Maldoideae). ''Systematic Botany'' 16: 546-552. {{Taxonbar, from=Q151069 canescens Flora of Arkansas Trees of the Southeastern United States Critically endangered flora of the United States Plants described in 1990 Endemic flora of the United States

Description

See also

References

External links