Distribution. Western and central New York; Hagaman swamp near Rochester, and Rush, Monroe County, Portage, Livingston County, Castile and Silver Springs, Wyoming County, and near Ithaca, Thompkins County; not common.
145. [Cratægus succulenta] Link.
Leaves elliptic, acute or acuminate at apex, gradually narrowed from near the middle to the entire base, coarsely and usually doubly serrate above with spreading glandular teeth, and divided above the middle into numerous short acute lobes, nearly fully grown when the flowers open at the end of May or early in June and then membranaceous, covered above with soft pale hairs, and puberulous or rarely nearly glabrous below, and at maturity coriaceous, dark green, glabrous and somewhat lustrous above, pale yellow-green and mostly puberulous below on the stout yellow midrib, and 4—7 pairs of slender veins extending obliquely to the point of the lobes and deeply impressed on the upper side, usually 2′—2½′ long and 1′—1½′ wide; petioles stout, more or less winged above, frequently bright red after midsummer, generally about ½′ in length; leaves at the end of vigorous shoots occasionally ovate, and often 2½′ long and 3′ wide. Flowers about ⅔′ in diameter, on long slender hairy pedicels, in broad lax villose corymbs; calyx-tube narrowly obconic, villose or glabrous, the lobes broad, acute, laciniate, glandular with bright red glands, and generally villose; stamens usually 20, sometimes 15; anthers small, rose color; styles 2 or 3, surrounded at base by a ring of pale hairs. Fruit beginning to ripen about the middle of September and sometimes remaining on the branches until the end of October, on slender elongated pedicels, in broad loose many-fruited drooping clusters, globose, bright scarlet, marked by large pale dots, ½′—⅔′ in diameter; calyx prominent, with a broad shallow depression, and much enlarged coarsely serrate closely appressed persistent lobes; flesh thick, yellow, becoming juicy, sweet and pulpy; nutlets 2 or 3, ⅓′ long, ¼′ broad, prominently ridged on the back, the ventral cavities wide and deep.
A tree, occasionally 20° high, with a short trunk 5′—6′ in diameter, covered with dark red-brown scaly bark, stout ascending branches forming a broad irregular head, and stout more or less zigzag glabrous dark orange-brown lustrous branchlets becoming dull gray-brown in their second season and ultimately ashy gray, and armed with numerous stout slightly curved bright chestnut-brown shining spines 1½′—2½′ long; or usually shrubby and much smaller, and often flowering when only a few feet high.
Distribution. Coast of northeastern Massachusetts; southwestern Vermont; eastern and western New York; near London, Ontario; widely distributed in Pennsylvania; northeastern Illinois.
146. [Cratægus gemmosa] Sarg.
Leaves broad-oval or rarely broad-obovate, gradually narrowed and cuneate or occasionally rounded at the entire base, sharply and usually doubly serrate from below the middle with straight glandular teeth, and often slightly lobed toward the acute or acuminate apex with short acute lobes, dark red and villose as they unfold, nearly fully grown when the flowers open from the middle to the end of May and then membranaceous, light yellow-green, nearly glabrous above and pale and villose below, and at maturity thick and firm in texture, very dark dull green on the upper surface, pale on the lower surface and pubescent on the under side of the stout yellow midrib deeply impressed and occasionally puberulous above, and on the 4 or 5 pairs of slender primary veins extending obliquely to the end of the leaf, 1½′—2½′ long, and 1′—2′ wide; petioles stout, villose or pubescent, more or less winged above, glandular while young with minute bright red caducous glands, usually pink in the autumn, ¼′—½′ in length; leaves at the end of vigorous shoots more coarsely serrate, frequently divided into short acute lateral lobes, and often 4′ long and 3′ wide, with a rose-colored midrib and stout spreading primary veins. Flowers ½′—¾′ in diameter, on slender hairy pedicels, in broad open compound villose many-flowered corymbs, with lanceolate or oblanceolate acuminate glandular-serrate conspicuous bracts and bractlets; calyx-tube narrowly obconic, more or less villose with matted pale hairs, or nearly glabrous, the lobes lanceolate, acuminate, glabrous or villose on the outer surface, villose on the inner surface, coarsely glandular-serrate with bright red glands; stamens 20; anthers small, rose color; styles 2 or 3, surrounded at the base by a narrow ring of pale tomentum. Fruit ripening early in October and becoming very succulent just before falling, on long slender pedicels, in drooping many-fruited glabrous or puberulous clusters, subglobose to short-oblong, scarlet, lustrous, ½′ in diameter; calyx prominent, with an elongated narrow tube, and reflexed villose lobes bright red toward the base on the upper side; flesh thick, bright yellow, sweet and succulent; nutlets usually 3, or 2, ¼′ long, broad and flat, full and rounded at the ends, ridged on the back with a prominent rounded ridge, the ventral cavities broad and deep.
A tree, occasionally 30° high, with a tall trunk 10′—12′ in diameter, covered with dark brown scaly bark, stout spreading or ascending branches forming a broad rather open symmetrical head, stout zigzag glabrous red-brown or gray-brown lustrous branchlets armed with straight or slightly curved thick chestnut-brown spines usually about 2′ long, and winter-buds sometimes ¼′ in diameter.