Crataegus ×collicola

Shrubs or trees, 50–80 dm. Stems: twigs: new growth glabrous or densely pubescent young, 1-year old gray-brown, older grayish; thorns on twigs numerous, dark chestnut-brown, older gray, slender, 2–8 cm. Leaves: petiole length 20–25% blade, pubescent, glandular; blade narrowly obovate, 3.5–5 cm, base narrowly cuneate, lobes 0, or 2 or 3 per side, sinuses shallow, lobe apex acute, margins serrulate, teeth 0.5–0.7 mm, venation camptodromous, veins 3–6 per side, apex acute, ± lustrous, abaxial surface villous on veins, adaxial soft-white-hairy young, becoming sparsely scabrous. Inflorescences 6–14-flowered; branches glabrous or sparsely pubescent; bracteoles caducous, numerous, reddish, very narrow, membranous, margins glandular. Flowers 18 mm diam.; hypanthium densely villous; sepals narrowly triangular, margins entire or sparsely glandular-serrate; stamens 20, anthers rose; styles 3–5. Pomes orange to dull-red or dark red, depressed orbicular to orbicular, 8–13 mm diam., pubescent young; sepals small, erose or ± patent; pyrenes 3–5, dorsally grooved, sides plane.

Phenology: Flowering May; fruiting Sep–Oct.
Habitat: Fertile ground along streams, fields, dry pastures in mountains
Elevation: 100–1000 m

Ark., Ky., Mo., N.C., Va.

Discussion

Crataegus ×collicola and C. ×verruculosa are two different putative hybrids, both of which are expected to possess parentage suggested by E. J. Palmer (1952) of C. collina and C. crus-galli. Crataegus ×collicola has thorns 4–8 mm, young twigs glabrous, leaf blade broadly elliptic to obovate, 2 or 3 lobes, and 4–6 veins per side, glabrous inflorescence branches, entire sepal margins, and pomes orange to dull red, depressed orbicular, and 8–11 mm diam. Crataegus ×verruculosa has thorns 2–2.5 mm, young twigs hairy, leaf blades narrowly obovate, unlobed, veins 3–5 per side, hairy inflorescence branches, sparingly glandular-serrate sepal margins, and pomes dark red, orbicular, 10–13 mm diam. If these are considered to be the same hybrid species, separate nothovariety names should be erected to maintain distinction.

Selected References

None.

Lower Taxa