''Sorbus decora'', commonly known as the northern mountain ash, showy mountain-ash, or dogberry, is a deciduous shrub or very small tree native to northeastern

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

. It occurs throughout the Laurentian Mixed Forest Province, the New England-Acadian forest region, and the eastern Canadian boreal forests.

Description

Showy mountain-ash grows tall. Its leaves are

odd-pinnate The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular o ...

ly compound, with 11–17 leaflets. Each leaflet is long and wide. All parts are hairless to slightly hairy. Flowers are borne in 125- to more than 400-flowered

panicle A panicle is a much-branched inflorescence. (softcover ). Some authors distinguish it from a compound spike inflorescence, by requiring that the flowers (and fruit) be pedicellate (having a single stem per flower). The branches of a panicle are of ...

s across. Each flower is across and has five white

petal Petals are modified Leaf, leaves that surround the reproductive parts of flowers. They are often advertising coloration, brightly colored or unusually shaped to attract pollinators. All of the petals of a flower are collectively known as the ''c ...

s long, 14–20

stamen The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

s, and carpels with 3–4 styles. The fruits (

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 ...

s) are bright red to orange-red and across.

Similar species

Showy mountain-ash is very similar to the closely related

American mountain-ash The tree species ''Sorbus americana'' is commonly known as the American mountain-ash. It is a deciduous perennial tree, native to eastern North America. The American mountain-ash and related species (most often the European mountain-ash, ''Sorbu ...

(''Sorbus americana''). Like the American mountain-ash, the showy mountain-ash has odd-

pinnately compound leaves Pinnation (also called pennation) is the arrangement of feather-like or multi-divided features arising from both sides of a common axis. Pinnation occurs in biological morphology, in crystals, such as some forms of ice or metal crystals, and in ...

and often large clusters of flowers and fruits. Showy mountain-ash can be distinguished by its shiny, sticky buds,Farrar, J.L. (1995). ''Trees in Canada.'' Markham, Ontario: Fitzhenry and Whitside/Canadian Forest Service. and its slightly larger flowers and fruit. It is said to bloom a week earlier.

Uses

It is often cultivated as an ornamental plant for its cold-hardiness, its attractive flowers, and its large clusters of small red berry-like

s. The fruits are an important source of food for wildlife, particularly birds in the winter and early spring.

References

External links

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Sorbus decora Information
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Interactive Distribution Map for Sorbus decora
{{Taxonbar, from=Q966130 decora Flora of Ontario Trees of Eastern Canada Trees of the North-Central United States Trees of the Northeastern United States Flora without expected TNC conservation status