Cotoneaster salicifolius
Leaves and fruits
The Willow- cotoneaster Cotoneaster or willow ( Cotoneaster salicifolius ) is a mostly evergreen, up to 5 meters tall shrub with red fruits from the group of pome fruit crops ( Pyrinae ). The natural range of the species is in China.
Description
The Willow- cotoneaster is a mostly evergreen, up to 5 meters tall shrub with spread to erect branches. The branches are reddish brown to gray-brown, densely pubescent tomentose at first and later glabrous. The leaves are divided into petiole and leaf blade. The petiole is often colored red, thick, hairy 4 to 5 millimeters long and tomentose. The stipules are brown, linear or linear - lanceolate, 4-7 mm long, hairy and slightly tomentose early deciduous. The leaf blade is simple, oval-oblong, ovate - lanceolate or linear - lanceolate, 4 to 8.5 inches long and 1.5 to 2.5 cm wide, entire, acute or acuminate and wedge base. There are 12 to 16 formed leaf veins. The upper leaf surface is hairy hairless or finely wrinkled with sunken veins; the underside is gray tomentose hairy with prominent veins.
The inflorescences are 3.5 to 6 centimeters long and 3-4 centimeters by measuring composite of many flowers with umbrella- tomentose hairy inflorescence spindles. The bracts are linear, 3-5 mm long and fall off soon. The flower stems are hairy tomentose and 2 to 4 millimeters long. The flowers have diameter of 5 to 6 mm. The cup is bell-shaped flowers and hairy gray-tomentose on the outside. The sepals are triangular, 1.5 to 2.5 millimeters long and pointed or tapered. The petals are horizontal, they are white, ovate or roundish, 2.5 to 4 mm long and 3-4 mm wide, glabrous, with a blunt tip and just nailed basis. The 20 stamens are slightly longer or about the same length as the petals. The anthers are reddish. The tip of the ovary is covered with fine hair. The two to three free-standing pen are equal in length or slightly shorter than the stamens. The scarlet, inverted egg-shaped, rounded or egg-shaped fruits have a diameter 3-7 mm. The fruit two or three nuclei are formed. The Willow- cotoneaster flowers in June, the fruits ripen in October.
The chromosome number is 2n = 34
Occurrence and habitat requirements
The natural range is located in the Chinese provinces of Guizhou, Hubei, Hunan, Sichuan and Yunnan. The Willow- cotoneaster grows in mountainous regions, in mixed forests, hillsides and open spaces in 400 to 3000 meters above sea level.
System
The Willow- cotoneaster ( Cotoneaster salicifolius ) is a species in the genus Zwergmispeln ( Cotoneaster ). It is assigned in the rose family ( Rosaceae ) of the subfamily Spiraeoideae, Tribe Pyreae the subtribes of pome fruit crops ( Pyrinae ). The species was described in 1886 by Adrien René Franchet Cotoneaster salicifolia as the first time scientifically. The genus name Cotoneaster is derived from the Latin " malum cotoneum " for the quince ( Cydonia oblonga ). The ending " aster " is a Vergröberungsform for groups of plants that are considered in comparison with similar groups as inferior. The specific epithet comes from the Latin salicifolius, salix means " pasture " and folius " flaky ", ie together " weidenblättrig ".
Use
Numerous cultivars are attributed to the type, many of which are developed from crossing with closely related species. According to another view, the cultivated varieties are only erroneously assigned Cotoneaster salicifolius and were bred from another species.