Whitebeam
Encyclopedia
The whitebeams are members of the Rosaceae
family, comprising subgenus Aria of genus Sorbus
, and hybrids involving species of this subgenus and members of subgenera Sorbus, Torminaria and Chamaemespilus. They are deciduous
tree
s with simple or lobed leaves, arranged alternately. They are related to the rowan
s (Sorbus subgenus Sorbus), and many of the endemic
restricted-range apomictic microspecies
of whitebeam in Europe
are thought to derive from hybrids between S. aria and the European rowan S. aucuparia
; some are also thought to be hybrids with the Wild Service Tree S. torminalis
, notably the Service Tree of Fontainebleau Sorbus latifolia in French woodlands.
The best known species is Common Whitebeam Sorbus aria
, but several other species from Europe
and Asia
in particular are widely cultivated as ornamental tree
s.
: "flashing as in gusts the sudden-lighted whitebeam".
The wood is a deep orange when wet, and pale yellow after drying.
Plus many other species
s, though less palatable (drier, less juicy) than rowan berries. Whitebeams are sometimes used as larva
l food plants by Lepidoptera
species including Short-cloaked Moth
.
The wood
is hard, and suited for woodturning
, furniture and tool handles, a tough wood that was used to make cogs before the use of iron
.
Rosaceae
Rosaceae are a medium-sized family of flowering plants, including about 2830 species in 95 genera. The name is derived from the type genus Rosa. Among the largest genera are Alchemilla , Sorbus , Crataegus , Cotoneaster , and Rubus...
family, comprising subgenus Aria of genus Sorbus
Sorbus
Sorbus is a genus of about 100–200 species of trees and shrubs in the subfamily Maloideae of the Rose family Rosaceae. Species of Sorbus are commonly known as whitebeam, rowan, service tree, and mountain ash...
, and hybrids involving species of this subgenus and members of subgenera Sorbus, Torminaria and Chamaemespilus. They are deciduous
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...
tree
Tree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
s with simple or lobed leaves, arranged alternately. They are related to the rowan
Rowan
The rowans or mountain-ashes are shrubs or small trees in genus Sorbus of family Rosaceae. They are native throughout the cool temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, with the highest species diversity in the mountains of western China and the Himalaya, where numerous apomictic microspecies...
s (Sorbus subgenus Sorbus), and many of the endemic
Endemic (ecology)
Endemism is the ecological state of being unique to a defined geographic location, such as an island, nation or other defined zone, or habitat type; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, all species of lemur are endemic to the...
restricted-range apomictic microspecies
Apomixis
In botany, apomixis was defined by Winkler as replacement of the normal sexual reproduction by asexual reproduction, without fertilization. This definition notably does not mention meiosis...
of whitebeam in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
are thought to derive from hybrids between S. aria and the European rowan S. aucuparia
Rowan
The rowans or mountain-ashes are shrubs or small trees in genus Sorbus of family Rosaceae. They are native throughout the cool temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, with the highest species diversity in the mountains of western China and the Himalaya, where numerous apomictic microspecies...
; some are also thought to be hybrids with the Wild Service Tree S. torminalis
Wild Service Tree
Sorbus torminalis , sometimes known as the Chequer Tree or Checker Tree, is a species of Sorbus native to Europe from England and Wales east to Denmark and Poland, south to northwest Africa, and southeast to southwest Asia from Asia Minor to the Caucasus and Alborz mountains.It is a medium-sized...
, notably the Service Tree of Fontainebleau Sorbus latifolia in French woodlands.
The best known species is Common Whitebeam Sorbus aria
Sorbus aria
Sorbus aria , the Whitebeam or Common Whitebeam is a deciduous tree, compact and domed, with few upswept branches; it generally favours dry limestone and chalk soils. The hermaphrodite cream-white flowers appear in May, are insect pollinated, and go on to produce scarlet berries, which are often...
, but several other species from Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
in particular are widely cultivated as ornamental tree
Ornamental 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...
s.
Appearance
The surface of the leaf is an unremarkable mid-green, but the underside is almost white (hence the name) transforming the appearance of the tree in strong winds, as noted by the poet MeredithGeorge Meredith
George Meredith, OM was an English novelist and poet of the Victorian era.- Life :Meredith was born in Portsmouth, England, a son and grandson of naval outfitters. His mother died when he was five. At the age of 14 he was sent to a Moravian School in Neuwied, Germany, where he remained for two...
: "flashing as in gusts the sudden-lighted whitebeam".
The wood is a deep orange when wet, and pale yellow after drying.
Classification
- section Aria - Sorbus aria and its close relatives
- section Alnifoliae - a group of Asian species
- section Thibeticae - a group of species from the Himalayas and southern China
- Sorbus intermedia group (nothosubgenus Soraria) - taxa of hybrid origin involving sections Aria and Sorbus
- Sorbus latifolia group (nothosubgenus Tormaria) - taxa of hybrid origin involving sections Aria and Torminaria
Selected species
Sorbus subgenus Aria- Sorbus admonitorSorbus admonitorThe No Parking Whitebeam or Sorbus No Parking is a species of whitebeam tree found in Devon, United Kingdom. Its unusual name derives from the location of the first tree to be found – by a lay-by near Watersmeet in North Devon, with a "no parking" sign nailed to the tree...
- No Parking Whitebeam - Sorbus alnifoliaSorbus alnifoliaSorbus alnifolia Alder-leafed Whitebeam or Korean Whitebeam; ) is a species of whitebeam native to eastern Asia in China, Korea and Japan.- Description :...
- Korean Whitebeam - Sorbus anglicaSorbus anglicaSorbus anglica, the English whitebeam is a species of tree in the Rosaceae family. It is uncommonly found in Ireland and the United Kingdom, with an entire British population estimated at about 600. individuals.-Source:...
- English Whitebeam - Sorbus ariaSorbus ariaSorbus aria , the Whitebeam or Common Whitebeam is a deciduous tree, compact and domed, with few upswept branches; it generally favours dry limestone and chalk soils. The hermaphrodite cream-white flowers appear in May, are insect pollinated, and go on to produce scarlet berries, which are often...
- Common Whitebeam - Sorbus aronioides - Chokeberry-leaved Whitebeam
- Sorbus arranensisSorbus arranensisSorbus arranensis, sometimes referred to as the Scottish or Arran Whitebeam is a species of plant in the Rosaceae family. It is endemic to the island of Arran in Scotland.-Range and habitat:...
- Arran Whitebeam - Sorbus austriacaSorbus austriacaSorbus austriaca is a species of Whitebeam. Its berries, which are a pome fruit, are inedible to humans but attract birds. It is also grown as an ornamental plant. Whitebeams are distinct of Rowans, which have pinnate leaves....
- Sorbus bristoliensisSorbus bristoliensisSorbus bristoliensis is a species of Whitebeam tree in the Rosaceae family. It is endemic to the United Kingdom, growing wild only in the Avon Gorge and in Leigh Woods area of Bristol-References:...
- Bristol Gorge Whitebeam - Sorbus cambrensis - Welsh Whitebeam
- Sorbus carpatica - Carpathian Whitebeam
- Sorbus cheddarensis - Cheddar Whitebeam
- Sorbus croceocarpa - Orange Whitebeam
- Sorbus cuneifolia - Llangollen Whitebeam
- Sorbus danubialis
- Sorbus decipiensSorbus decipiensSorbus decipiens is a species of plant in the Rosaceae family. It is endemic to Germany.-Source:* Schmidt, P.A. 1998. . Downloaded on 23 August 2007....
- Sharp-toothed Whitebeam - Sorbus devoniensisSorbus devoniensisSorbus Devonensis is known by the English name of Devon Whitebeam. It is a species of Whitebeam tree in the Rosaceae family. It is endemic to the British Isles, growing wild only in areas of Devon, Cornwall, Somerset and Ireland....
- Devon Whitebeam - Sorbus eminensSorbus eminensSorbus eminens, sometimes classified as Aria eminens when the Aria subgenus of Sorbus is elevated to full genus, is a species of plant in the Rosaceae family. It is endemic to the United Kingdom. It is threatened by habitat loss.-Source:...
- Round-leaved Whitebeam - Sorbus eminentiformis - Doward Whitebeam
- Sorbus eminentoides - Twin Cliffs Whitebeam
- Sorbus folgneri - Folgner's Whitebeam
- Sorbus franconicaSorbus franconicaSorbus franconica is a species of plant in the Rosaceae family. It is endemic to Little Switherland in North-Bavaria, Germany.-Source:* Schmidt, P.A. 1998. . Downloaded on 23 August 2007....
- Sorbus graeca - Balkan Whitebeam
- Sorbus hibernica - Irish Whitebeam
- Sorbus hybridaSorbus hybridaSorbus hybrida is a species of whitebeam native to Scandinavia in Norway, eastern Sweden, and southwestern Finland, and locally in the Baltic States in Latvia....
- Finnish Whitebeam, Swedish Service-Tree - Sorbus intermediaSorbus intermediaSorbus intermedia is a species of whitebeam in southern Sweden, with scattered occurrences in easternmost Denmark , the far southwest of Finland), the Baltic States, and northern Poland....
- Swedish Whitebeam - Sorbus lancastriensisSorbus lancastriensisSorbus lancastriensis is a species of plant in the Rosaceae family. It is endemic to the United Kingdom. It is threatened by habitat loss.-Source:* Wigginton, M.J. 1998. . Downloaded on 23 August 2007....
- Lancastrian Whitebeam - Sorbus latifolia - Service Tree of Fontainebleau
- Sorbus leighensis - Leigh Woods Whitebeam
- Sorbus leptophyllaSorbus leptophyllaSorbus leptophylla is a species of plant in the Rosaceae family. It is endemic to the United Kingdom.-References:* Wigginton, M.J. 1998. . Downloaded on 23 August 2007....
- Thin-leaved Whitebeam - Sorbus leyanaSorbus leyanaSorbus leyana is a species of plant in the Rosaceae family. It is endemic to the United Kingdom, where it is found in the wild at two sites in the Brecon Beacons, in Wales. It is threatened by habitat loss. There are about 16 examples left in the wild. Seeds have been collected by the Royal...
- Ley's Whitebeam - Sorbus margaretae - Margaret's Whitebeam
- Sorbus minimaSorbus minimaSorbus minima, commonly known as the lesser whitebeam or least whitebeam, is a shrub belonging to the subgenus Aria in the genus Sorbus. It is endemic to Wales where it grows at a few sites in Breconshire...
- Least Whitebeam - Sorbus mougeotiiSorbus mougeotiiSorbus mougeotii is a species of whitebeam native to the mountains of central and western Europe from the Pyrenees east through the Alps to Austria, and north to the Vosges Mountains....
- Vosges Whitebeam - Sorbus parviloba - Ship Rock Whitebeam
- Sorbus porrigentiformis - Grey-leaved Whitebeam
- Sorbus pseudofennicaSorbus pseudofennicaSorbus pseudofennica is a species of plant in the Rosaceae family. It is a naturally occurring hybrid caused by the Rock Whitebeam hybridising with the Rowan , then crossing back with S. aucuparia...
- Arran Service Tree - Sorbus pseudomeinichiiSorbus pseudomeinichiiSorbus pseudomeinichii, known as Catacol Whitebeam, is a rare tree endemic to the Isle of Arran in south west Scotland. It is believed to have arisen as a hybrid of the native Rowan and the Cut-leaved Whitebeam which is in turn a Rowan/Arran Whitebeam hybrid...
- False Rowan - Sorbus rupicolaSorbus rupicolaSorbus rupicola, known as Rock Whitebeam, is a rare shrub or small tree best known from the British Isles but also reported from Norway, Sweden and Russia. It prefers basic soil near edges of forests or other shrubs. If growing to full trees, S. rupicola can reach heights of 3—5 m...
- Rock Whitebeam - Sorbus rupicoloides - Gough's Rock Whitebeam
- Sorbus saxicola - Symonds Yat Whitebeam
- Sorbus scannelliana - Scannell's Whitebeam
- Sorbus stenophylla - Llanthony Whitebeam
- Sorbus stirtoniana - Stirton's Whitebeam
- Sorbus subcuneataSorbus subcuneataSorbus subcuneata is a species of plant in the Rosaceae family. It is endemic to coastal north Devon and west Somerset in the United Kingdom. It is threatened by habitat loss.-References:* Wigginton, M.J. 1998. . Downloaded on 23 August 2007....
- Somerset Whitebeam - Sorbus thibetica - Tibetan Whitebeam
- Sorbus umbellata
- Sorbus vestita - Himalayan Whitebeam
- Sorbus vexansSorbus vexansSorbus vexans is a rare tree in the Rosaceae family. It is endemic to the United Kingdom. It can be seen in the Exmoor National Park. It is threatened by habitat loss.-References:...
- Bloody Whitebeam - Sorbus whiteana - White's Whitebeam
- Sorbus wilmottianaSorbus wilmottianaSorbus wilmottiana is a species of plant in the Rosaceae family. It is endemic to the United Kingdom. It is threatened by habitat loss.-Source:* Wigginton, M.J. 1998. . Downloaded on 23 August 2007....
- Wilmott's Whitebeam
Plus many other species
- Sorbus subgenus SorbusRowanThe rowans or mountain-ashes are shrubs or small trees in genus Sorbus of family Rosaceae. They are native throughout the cool temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, with the highest species diversity in the mountains of western China and the Himalaya, where numerous apomictic microspecies...
- Sorbus Other subgeneraSorbusSorbus is a genus of about 100–200 species of trees and shrubs in the subfamily Maloideae of the Rose family Rosaceae. Species of Sorbus are commonly known as whitebeam, rowan, service tree, and mountain ash...
Uses
The berries are a favourite of birdBird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s, though less palatable (drier, less juicy) than rowan berries. Whitebeams are sometimes used as larva
Larva
A larva is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle...
l food plants by Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera is a large order of insects that includes moths and butterflies . It is one of the most widespread and widely recognizable insect orders in the world, encompassing moths and the three superfamilies of butterflies, skipper butterflies, and moth-butterflies...
species including Short-cloaked Moth
Short-cloaked Moth
The Short-cloaked Moth is a moth of the family Nolidae. It is distributed through most of Europe. It was collected in 2008 in the greaterVancouver area of British Columbia...
.
The wood
Wood
Wood is a hard, fibrous tissue found in many trees. It has been used for hundreds of thousands of years for both fuel and as a construction material. It is an organic material, a natural composite of cellulose fibers embedded in a matrix of lignin which resists compression...
is hard, and suited for woodturning
Woodturning
Woodturning is a form of woodworking that is used to create wooden objects on a lathe . Woodturning differs from most other forms of woodworking in that the wood is moving while a stationary tool is used to cut and shape it...
, furniture and tool handles, a tough wood that was used to make cogs before the use of iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
.