Sorbus decora
Encyclopedia
Sorbus decora, commonly known as the showy mountain-ash or "dogberry" is a deciduous
shrub or very small tree native to northeastern North America
. It occurs throughout the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Mixedwood forest region, the New England-Acadian forest region, and the eastern Canadian boreal forests
.
Showy mountain-ash is very similar to the closely related American mountain-ash. Like the American mountain-ash (Sorbus Americana), the showy mountain-ash has pinnately compound leaves and often large clusters of flowers and fruits. However, a useful distinguishing feature of this species is its shiny, sticky buds .
for its cold-hardiness, its attractive flowers, and its large clusters of small red berry-like pome
s.
The fruits are an important source of food for wildlife, particularly birds in the winter and early spring.
Deciduous
Deciduous means "falling off at maturity" or "tending to fall off", and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally, and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe...
shrub or very small tree native to northeastern North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
. It occurs throughout the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Mixedwood forest region, the New England-Acadian forest region, and the eastern Canadian boreal forests
Boreal forest of Canada
Canada's boreal forest comprises about one third of the circumpolar boreal forest that rings the northern hemisphere, mostly north of the 50th parallel. Other countries with boreal forest include Russia, which contains the majority, and the Scandinavian and Nordic countries . The boreal region in...
.
Showy mountain-ash is very similar to the closely related American mountain-ash. Like the American mountain-ash (Sorbus Americana), the showy mountain-ash has pinnately compound leaves and often large clusters of flowers and fruits. However, a useful distinguishing feature of this species is its shiny, sticky buds .
Uses
It is often cultivated as an ornamental plantOrnamental plant
Ornamental plants are plants that are grown for decorative purposes in gardens and landscape design projects, as house plants, for cut flowers and specimen display...
for its cold-hardiness, its attractive flowers, and its large clusters of small red berry-like pome
Pome
In botany, a pome is a type of fruit produced by flowering plants in the subfamily Maloideae of the family Rosaceae.A pome is an accessory fruit composed of one or more carpels surrounded by accessory tissue...
s.
The fruits are an important source of food for wildlife, particularly birds in the winter and early spring.