Sorbus glabriuscula McAll.

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Credits

Article from New Trees, Ross Bayton & John Grimshaw

Sorbus glabriusculaMcAll.

Synonyms: S. hupehensis hort. non C.K. Schneid. (white-fruited form),S. glabrescens hort. non (Cardot) Hand.-Mazz.

Tree to 8–15 m. Branchlets stiff and stout. Buds red, conical to ovoid, to 1.5 cm long with some reddish brown hairs on the margins and apices of the scales. Leaves 14–26 cm long, with five to eight pairs of leaflets. Leaflets 4–5.5 × 2 cm, obovate, upper surface glabrous, lower surface somewhat papillose, margins toothed for half to two-thirds of their length; leaves turning orange-yellow in autumn. Fruit white flushed with pink at the calyx, 0.75 × 0.8 cm; calyx lobes very fleshy, carpels four to five. Tetraploid apomict (2n = 68). McAllister 2005a. Distribution CHINA: Yunnan (Lijiang range). Habitat Scrub on steep slopes. USDA Hardiness Zone 6. Conservation status Not evaluated. Illustration McAllister 2005a; NT797.

Sorbus glabriuscula is discussed here to establish the unfamiliar new name for a familiar old plant, the white-fruited S. hupehensis of horticulture. The species is comprehensively discussed by McAllister (2005a), who believes that it must have been introduced by George Forrest, although details are a little hazy. Whatever its origins this is a first-class tree, producing its heavy crops of persistent white fruits reliably each year. It appears at its best when planted against a dark background of conifers, where winter sunlight can illuminate the fruits. The first record of it flowering in cultivation is a herbarium specimen collected in Woburn, Bedfordshire in 1931, so it is interesting that good specimens are growing now in adjacent small private gardens in Woburn village, presumably on their own roots (H. McAllister, pers. comm. 2007).

To help clarify the situation regarding the species known in horticulture as S. hupehensis, and their allies, a key is provided below.

Key to Sorbus glabriuscula, S. pseudohupehensis and similar tetraploid apomictic species in section Discolores

1a.	Fruits white, occasionally with a pink flush especially at calyx	2
1b.	Fruits usually mostly pink or red (can be almost white in S. pseudohupehensis if grown in shade)	3
2a.	Leaflets elliptic, fruit elongated (longer than broad)	S. ellipsoidalis
2b.	Leaflets oblong to obovate, fruit more or less round	S. glabriuscula
3a.	Leaflets more or less equal in size, so leaf outline is parallelsided, usually not blue-green; fruits comparatively soft, some exceeding 7 × 8 mm	4
3b.	Leaflets increasing in size towards apex, so leaf outline is kite-shaped, usually blue-green; fruits very hard, not exceeding 7 × 8 mm	5
4a.	Leaflets in seven to eight pairs, oblong, rounded at base; fruit white flushed crimson, seed flattened	S. coxii
4b.	Leaflets in six to seven pairs, oblong-elliptic, cuneate at base;fruit to 8.5 × 9 mm, white heavily flushed crimson, seed globular	S. muliensis
5a.	Fruit to 7 mm, white flushed pink at calyx and where exposed to sun; autumn foliage turning from purplish to crimson; often biennial fruiting in UK	S. pseudohupehensis
5b.	Fruit to 8 mm, crimson becoming paler and more pink; autumn foliage orange and red; fruiting annually	S. carmesina

Recommended citation
'Sorbus glabriuscula' from the website Trees and Shrubs Online (treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/sorbus/sorbus-glabriuscula/). Accessed 2022-05-23.

Genus

Sorbus

Synonyms

S. hupehensis hort. non C.K. Schneid. (white-fruited form)
S. glabrescens hort. non (Cardot) Hand.-Mazz.

Other taxa in genus

Glossary

herbarium: A collection of preserved plant specimens; also the building in which such specimens are housed.
key: (of fruit) Vernacular English term for winged samaras (as in e.g. Acer Fraxinus Ulmus)

References

There are no active references in this article.

Credits

Article from New Trees, Ross Bayton & John Grimshaw

Sorbus glabriusculaMcAll.

Synonyms: S. hupehensis hort. non C.K. Schneid. (white-fruited form),S. glabrescens hort. non (Cardot) Hand.-Mazz.

Tree to 8–15 m. Branchlets stiff and stout. Buds red, conical to ovoid, to 1.5 cm long with some reddish brown hairs on the margins and apices of the scales. Leaves 14–26 cm long, with five to eight pairs of leaflets. Leaflets 4–5.5 × 2 cm, obovate, upper surface glabrous, lower surface somewhat papillose, margins toothed for half to two-thirds of their length; leaves turning orange-yellow in autumn. Fruit white flushed with pink at the calyx, 0.75 × 0.8 cm; calyx lobes very fleshy, carpels four to five. Tetraploid apomict (2n = 68). McAllister 2005a. Distribution CHINA: Yunnan (Lijiang range). Habitat Scrub on steep slopes. USDA Hardiness Zone 6. Conservation status Not evaluated. Illustration McAllister 2005a; NT797.

Sorbus glabriuscula is discussed here to establish the unfamiliar new name for a familiar old plant, the white-fruited S. hupehensis of horticulture. The species is comprehensively discussed by McAllister (2005a), who believes that it must have been introduced by George Forrest, although details are a little hazy. Whatever its origins this is a first-class tree, producing its heavy crops of persistent white fruits reliably each year. It appears at its best when planted against a dark background of conifers, where winter sunlight can illuminate the fruits. The first record of it flowering in cultivation is a herbarium specimen collected in Woburn, Bedfordshire in 1931, so it is interesting that good specimens are growing now in adjacent small private gardens in Woburn village, presumably on their own roots (H. McAllister, pers. comm. 2007).

To help clarify the situation regarding the species known in horticulture as S. hupehensis, and their allies, a key is provided below.

Key to Sorbus glabriuscula, S. pseudohupehensis and similar tetraploid apomictic species in section Discolores

1a.	Fruits white, occasionally with a pink flush especially at calyx	2
1b.	Fruits usually mostly pink or red (can be almost white in S. pseudohupehensis if grown in shade)	3
2a.	Leaflets elliptic, fruit elongated (longer than broad)	S. ellipsoidalis
2b.	Leaflets oblong to obovate, fruit more or less round	S. glabriuscula
3a.	Leaflets more or less equal in size, so leaf outline is parallelsided, usually not blue-green; fruits comparatively soft, some exceeding 7 × 8 mm	4
3b.	Leaflets increasing in size towards apex, so leaf outline is kite-shaped, usually blue-green; fruits very hard, not exceeding 7 × 8 mm	5
4a.	Leaflets in seven to eight pairs, oblong, rounded at base; fruit white flushed crimson, seed flattened	S. coxii
4b.	Leaflets in six to seven pairs, oblong-elliptic, cuneate at base;fruit to 8.5 × 9 mm, white heavily flushed crimson, seed globular	S. muliensis
5a.	Fruit to 7 mm, white flushed pink at calyx and where exposed to sun; autumn foliage turning from purplish to crimson; often biennial fruiting in UK	S. pseudohupehensis
5b.	Fruit to 8 mm, crimson becoming paler and more pink; autumn foliage orange and red; fruiting annually	S. carmesina

Recommended citation
'Sorbus glabriuscula' from the website Trees and Shrubs Online (treesandshrubsonline.org/articles/sorbus/sorbus-glabriuscula/). Accessed 2022-05-23.

Sorbus glabriuscula was known to gardeners for many years as S. hupehensis (white-fruited form). Sorbus flowers are all rather similar, and are not described here individually for each species. Image J. Grimshaw.

Tree to 8–15 m. Branchlets stiff and stout. Buds red, conical to ovoid, to 1.5 cm long with some reddish brown hairs on the margins and apices of the scales. Leaves 14–26 cm long, with five to eight pairs of leaflets. Leaflets 4–5.5 × 2 cm, obovate, upper surface glabrous, lower surface somewhat papillose, margins toothed for half to two-thirds of their length; leaves turning orange-yellow in autumn. Fruit white flushed with pink at the calyx, 0.75 × 0.8 cm; calyx lobes very fleshy, carpels four to five. Tetraploid apomict (2n = 68). McAllister 2005a. Distribution CHINA: Yunnan (Lijiang range). Habitat Scrub on steep slopes. USDA Hardiness Zone 6. Conservation status Not evaluated. Illustration McAllister 2005a; NT797.

Sorbus glabriuscula is discussed here to establish the unfamiliar new name for a familiar old plant, the white-fruited S. hupehensis of horticulture. The species is comprehensively discussed by McAllister (2005a), who believes that it must have been introduced by George Forrest, although details are a little hazy. Whatever its origins this is a first-class tree, producing its heavy crops of persistent white fruits reliably each year. It appears at its best when planted against a dark background of conifers, where winter sunlight can illuminate the fruits. The first record of it flowering in cultivation is a herbarium specimen collected in Woburn, Bedfordshire in 1931, so it is interesting that good specimens are growing now in adjacent small private gardens in Woburn village, presumably on their own roots (H. McAllister, pers. comm. 2007).

To help clarify the situation regarding the species known in horticulture as S. hupehensis, and their allies, a key is provided below.

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