A tree, sometimes 20° high, with a trunk 8′—9′ in diameter, spreading branches forming a broad flat-topped head, and slender nearly straight branchlets, villose at first, becoming glabrous, pale reddish brown, ultimately ashy gray, and sometimes armed with slender straight spines 1′—1¼′ long.
Distribution. Low open Oak and Hickory woods near Opelousas, St. Landry Parish, and Natchitoches, Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana.
25. [Cratægus Mohrii] Beadl.
Leaves obovate or rhombic, acute or acuminate, gradually narrowed and cuneate at the entire base, and coarsely, occasionally doubly serrate above with straight or incurved teeth, when they unfold glabrous and slightly villose along the midrib and the lower side of the principal veins, nearly fully grown when the flowers open early in May, and at maturity thin and firm or subcoriaceous, dark green and very lustrous above, pale below, 1′—1½′ long, and ⅔′—1′ wide, usually with 4 pairs of thin primary veins, a stout midrib sometimes puberulous on the under side and bright red in the autumn; petioles frequently red at maturity, ⅓′—½′ in length; leaves at the end of vigorous shoots sometimes 3′ long and 2′ wide, mostly broad-elliptic, acute or acuminate, coarsely doubly serrate, and frequently divided toward the apex into short broad acute lobes; petioles, strait, glandular; petioles broadly winged, and occasionally glandular with minute dark glands. Flowers cup-shaped, about ¾′ in diameter, on slender elongated pedicels, in loose thin-branched many-flowered glabrous or villose corymbs; calyx-tube narrowly obconic, glabrous or occasionally pilose toward the base, the lobes linear-lanceolate, entire or finely glandular-serrate; stamens 20; anthers small, light yellow; styles 3—5, surrounded at base by a narrow ring of pale hairs. Fruit ripening about the middle of October, gracefully drooping on elongated thin bright red pedicels, in many-fruited clusters, subglobose to short-oblong, somewhat flattened at apex, full and rounded at base, bright orange-red, about ⅓′ in diameter; calyx prominent, with a short tube and usually erect lobes often deciduous before the fruit ripens; nutlets usually 3, about ¼′ long.
A tree, from 20°—30° high, with a tall straight trunk 6′—8′ in diameter, covered with thin ashy gray or light red-brown bark, sometimes armed with long slender or branched spines, spreading slightly pendulous branches forming a rather open broad symmetrical head, and branchlets furnished with thin nearly straight bright chestnut-brown shining spines 1′—1½′ long.
Distribution. Western Georgia to central Alabama and eastern Mississippi, and northward to middle Tennessee; abundant and of its largest size in the low flat woods near Birmingham, Jefferson County, Alabama, ascending into the poorer and drier soils of the neighboring hillsides and low mountain slopes.
II. PUNCTATÆ.
CONSPECTUS OF THE ARBORESCENT SPECIES.
Fruit usually short-oblong. Anthers rose color or yellow; stamens 20; leaves obovate, often acutely lobed above the middle, their veins deeply impressed; fruit on stout pedicels, short-oblong to subglobose, flattened at the ends, dull red or bright yellow, marked by large pale dots.26. [C. punctata] (A). Anthers rose color; stamens 10—20; leaves oblong-obovate or oval, their veins not deeply impressed, fruit on long slender pedicels, short-oblong to obovoid, rounded at the ends, dull brick-red, marked by large pale dots.27. [C. pausiaca] (A). Fruit usually globose or subglobose. Stamens 20. Anthers pale yellow. Corymbs villose. Leaves obovate to oval or rarely rhombic, acute; fruit globose, or sometimes broader than high, dull red, marked by small pale dots.28. [C. collina] (A, C). Leaves obovate, oval, or ovate, acute or acuminate, incisely lobed; fruit globose, dull red.29. [C. amnicola] (C). Corymbs glabrous; leaves broadly oval to ovate, rounded or acute at apex, occasionally rounded at base, subcoriaceous; fruit subglobose to short-oblong, dull orange-red, marked by large pale dots.30. [C. fastosa] (C). Anthers rose color. Leaves scabrate on the upper surface. Leaves ovate, oval or rarely obovate, acuminate; flowers in compact usually 6—8-flowered corymbs.31. [C. silvestris] (A). Leaves obovate to rhombic, acute or rarely rounded at apex; flowers in wide usually 9—12-flowered corymbs.32. [C. verruculosa.] Leaves glabrous on the upper surface. Corymbs slightly villose. Leaves obovate to rhombic, acute or rounded at apex; fruit globose, dark dull red.33. [C. sordida] (C). Leaves oval to obovate, acute or acuminate at apex; fruit often rather longer than broad, bright canary-yellow.34. [C. brazoria] (C). Corymbs densely villose; leaves obovate, acute, acuminate or rounded at apex; fruit subglobose, dark dull red.35. [C. dallasiana] (C). Stamens 10. Anthers pale yellow; leaves obovate, acute or acuminate or rounded and short-pointed at apex; fruit subglobose, pubescent at the ends, dull orange-red.36. [C. Lettermanii] (A). Anthers rose color; leaves oblong-obovate, acute or rounded at apex; fruit globose, bright scarlet, slightly pruinose.37. [C. pratensis] (A).