MALÀCEAE.[51] The Apple Family.
The trees of this family that occur in our area have simple, alternate leaves; perfect, regular flowers, 5-merous calyx and corolla; fruit a more or less fleshy pome.
| Flowers in racemes, cavities of mature fruit twice as many as the styles, seeds less than 4 mm. (1/8 inch) long | [2 Amelanchier.] |
| Flowers in cymes or corymbs, cavities of mature fruit as many as the styles, seeds more than 4 mm. (1/8 inch) long. | |
| Fruit green, mature carpels papery | [1 Malus.] |
| Fruit red, orange, blue-black or yellow, mature carpels bony | [3 Cratægus.] |
Malus angustifolia has been reported from the State, but it is a species of more southern range. Both Malus ioensis and Malus lancifolia may easily be mistaken for this species.
| Leaves and petioles glabrous or only slightly pubescent; calyx tube and outside of calyx lobes glabrous or only slightly pubescent. | |
| Leaves distinctly lobed, at least those of vigorous shoots; petioles pubescent above | [1 M. glaucescens.] |
| Leaves serrate, not lobed; petioles glabrous | [2 M. lancifolia.] |
| Leaves (at least the lower surfaces) and petioles densely tomentose; calyx lobes densely tomentose on both sides | [3 M. ioensis.] |
1. Malus glaucéscens Rehder. American Crab Apple (M. fragrans Rehder). [Plate 72.] Bark reddish, fissured and scaly; leaves on glandless petioles, petioles usually 2-4 cm. (3/4-11/2 inches) long, leaves narrow ovate to almost triangular, those on the lateral branchlets of the ovate type, those of the terminal branchlets and vigorous shoots of the triangular type, 3-8 cm. (11/2-3 inches) long, acute at the apex, mostly rounded or somewhat cordate at the base, sometimes tapering, those of the triangular type usually truncate, margin of the ovate type of leaves more or less sharply serrate, the basal third of the leaf with shallow teeth or entire, margins of the triangular type more deeply serrate to almost lobed, hairy above and below when they expand, becoming smooth both above and below, sometimes a few hairs are found on the veins beneath at maturity, bright green above, paler beneath; flowers appear in May when the leaves are about half grown, usually 5 or 6 in a cluster, white or rose-color, very fragrant, 3-4 cm. (11/2-2 inches) broad when fully expanded; calyx lobes lanceolate-acuminate, tomentose on the inside, glabrous outside; fruit depressed-globose, without angles, yellow-green, 2-4.5 cm. (3/4-2 inches) thick, 2-2.5 cm. (3/4-1 inch) long, very fragrant and covered with a waxy bloom.
Distribution.—Central New York, lower peninsula Michigan, western New Jersey to northern Alabama and Missouri. Found in all parts of Indiana. No doubt in the original forests it was rare, but the removal of the large trees has been favorable to its growth until today it is somewhat frequent in moist open woods, along streams and neglected fences. It is most frequent among the hills in southern Indiana, and in all its distribution it is usually found in clumps.