Flora of North America species comparison

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Malacomeles

Rosaceae tribe Maleae

false serviceberry
Habit Shrubs, 10–30[–50] dm. Trees or shrubs; armed or unarmed.
Stems

1–20, ascending, much branched, often ± twisted, young stems terete, closely villous, smooth;

bark brown or gray, young stems not hairy; long shoots present, short shoots sometimes present; unarmed;

grayish- or whitish-tomentose, sometimes glabrate; overwintering buds tomentose.

Leaves

drought-deciduous or persistent, cauline, simple, slightly conduplicate;

stipules tardily deciduous or ± persistent, free, lanceolate, glandlike, margins entire;

petiole present;

blade elliptic or oblong-ovate to orbiculate, 0.5–1.5[–3.1] cm, leathery, margins flat, denticulate or entire, teeth gland-tipped, venation pinnate, abaxial surface tomentose, adaxial ± glabrous.

alternate, simple or pinnately compound;

stipules persistent, deciduous, or absent, free, sometimes adnate or short-adnate to petiole (and base of blade in Peraphyllum );

venation pinnate.
Inflorescences

terminal on leafy shoots of season, 1–5[–7]-flowered, corymbs [panicles], axes glabrous or hairy;

bracts absent;

bracteoles sometimes present.

Pedicels

present.

Flowers

perianth and androecium epigynous, 10 mm diam.;

hypanthium campanulate [urceolate], (2–)3–4 mm, distally copiously white-tomentose;

sepals 5, spreading, nearly orbiculate (inner broadly deltate);

petals 5, white, round or kidney-shaped, base short-clawed;

stamens [8–]14–20[–22], longer or shorter than petals;

carpels 2 or 3[–5], barely connate or distinct, adnate to proximal 1/2–4/5 of hypanthium, ovary appearing 4–10-loculed by false partitions, densely hairy, styles 2 or 3, ventral, distinct;

ovules 2 (separated by false partition).

perianth and androecium epigynous (perigynous in Vauquelinia );

epicalyx bractlets absent;

hypanthium hemispheric, campanulate, cupulate, funnelform, or obconic, sometimes urceolate, cylindric, or saucer-shaped;

torus absent (present in Vauquelinia );

carpels 1–5, ± connate or distinct, adnate more than 1/2 to hypanthium (free in Vauquelinia , [Dichotomanthes ]), styles terminal, sometimes subterminal or lateral, distinct or ± connate basally;

ovules (1 or)2(or 3), basal and collateral, or 2–20+, marginal and biseriate (with funicular obturators).
Fruits

berrylike pomes, translucent, vivid pink, drying purplish black, globose, 6–10 mm, glabrous;

flesh whitish;

hypanthium persistent;

sepals persistent, erect or recurving;

carpels cartilaginous;

styles persistent.

pomes or woody capsules surrounded by hypanthium and splitting into 5 follicles (coccetum) (Vauquelinia);

styles persistent or deciduous, not elongate.
Seeds

4–6(–10).

Malacomeles

Rosaceae tribe Maleae
Distribution
from USDA
United States; Mexico; Central America
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
HI; North America; Mexico; Central America; Eurasia; Africa; Atlantic Islands (Madeira) [Introduced in temperate southern hemisphere]
Discussion

Species 2 (1 in the flora).

Malacomeles shares with Amelanchier and Peraphyllum the feature of false partitions within the carpels; the partitions partially divide the locules and make the fruit appear to have twice as many locules as the number of carpels (G. N. Jones 1945; K. R. Robertson et al. 1991; J. R. Rohrer et al. 1991). Sequences from multiple chloroplast and nuclear genes indicate that Malacomeles is closely related to Amelanchier and Peraphyllum (C. S. Campbell et al. 2007).

The other species in the genus, Malacomeles nervosa (Decaisne) G. N. Jones, is known from Nuevo León, Mexico south to Guatemala.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Genera 29, species 550–840+ (18 genera, 270 species, including 18 hybrids, in the flora).

The family name Malaceae Small (1903) is a conserved name, with Malus as its type genus. In contrast, the family name Pyraceae Vest (1818), with Pyrus as its type, is not a conserved name. Although Maleae was published later than Pyreae (1869), a Rosaceae tribe that includes both Malus and Pyrus is to be called Maleae (see Melbourne Code, Article 19.5, Example 5).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Key
1. Leaf margins usually horny; carpels free; flowers: perianth and androecium perigynous; fruits woody capsules surrounded by a hypanthium, splitting into 5 follicles; seeds winged
Vauquelinia
1. Leaf margins not horny; carpels ± adnate to hypanthium; flowers: perianth and androecium epigynous; fruits pomes; seeds not winged or pyrenes.
→ 2
2. Fruiting carpels woody or bony.
→ 3
3. Leaf margins entire; stipules short-adnate to petiole; stems unarmed; sepals erect in flower; petal base clawed.
Cotoneaster
3. Leaf margins ± serrate, crenate, serrulate, or crenulate, sometimes entire; stipules free; stems usually armed (sometimes with compound thorns), sometimes unarmed; sepals spreading in flower; petal base slightly or barely clawed.
→ 4
4. Leaves persistent or late-deciduous; flowers 3–10(–12) mm diam., hypanthium campanulate; pomes 3–8 mm diam.
Pyracantha
4. Leaves deciduous (sometimes winter-persistent in south); flowers 8–35 mm diam., hypanthium ± obconic; pomes 6–40 mm diam.
→ 5
5. Flowers 8–25 mm diam., stamens 5–20 (rarely 30–45); pomes yellow to red or purplish to black mature, 6–20(–25) mm diam.; pyrenes 1–5; short shoots present; inflorescences 1–50-flowered, domed panicles, corymbose, or flowers solitary.
Crataegus
5. Flowers 25–35 mm diam., stamens 25–35(–40); pomes brownish, 15–40 mm diam.; pyrenes 5; short shoots rare or absent; inflorescences 1(or 2) flowered
Mespilus
2. Fruiting carpels cartilaginous.
→ 6
6. Stems armed (thorns present).>
→ 7
7. Stipules persistent; pedicels short or absent; styles basally connate 1/3 of length; pome flesh without stones; stamens 40–60; fruiting sepals deciduous.
Chaenomeles
7. Stipules usually deciduous or caducous; pedicels present; styles distinct or basally connate; pome flesh with stones (at least near carpels and epidermis); stamens 15–50; fruiting sepals persistent or deciduous.
→ 8
8. Pome flesh with stone cells adjacent to carpels and epidermis; styles basally connate.
Malus
8. Pome flesh with abundant stone or grit cells; styles distinct.
Pyrus
6. Stems unarmed.
→ 9
9. Inflorescences: flowers solitary or 1–5-flowered, corymbs or cymes.
→ 10
10. Pomes yellow; ovules (seeds) many; inflorescences: flowers solitary.
→ 11
11. Leaf margins entire, abaxial surfaces densely villous; buds ovoid, apices obtuse or acuminate, tomentose; young branches tomentose, glabrescent; stipules caducous; flowers 40–50 mm diam., petals white or light pink, suborbiculate, ovate, or obovate, stamens equal to or slightly longer than petals; pomes pyriform or subglobose, 30–50 mm.
Cydonia
10. Pomes pink, yellow-orange, purple, purplish or bluish black, brownish, or nearly black; ovules (seeds) (1 or)2; inflorescences 1–5-flowered, cymes or corymbs.
→ 12
12. Pomes yellow-orange; stipules adnate to petiole and base of blade; petioles short or absent; leaf blades elliptic to oblanceolate or linear.
Peraphyllum
12. Pomes pink, bluish or purplish black, purple, brownish, or nearly black; stipules free; petioles present; leaf blades elliptic, elliptic-oblong, or oblong-ovate to orbiculate.
→ 13
13. Leaves leathery, drought-deciduous or persistent; sepals nearly orbiculate (inner broadly deltate), petals round or kidney-shaped; carpels barely connate or distinct, styles lateral; pomes translucent, vivid pink, drying purplish black.
Malacomeles
13. Leaves membranous to coriaceous (not leathery), deciduous; sepals triangular to lanceolate, petals linear to orbiculate; carpels connate, styles terminal; pomes bluish or purplish to nearly black, pinkish or maroon-purple, dark purple-blue, or brownish.
Amelanchier
9. Inflorescences (4 or)5–400+-flowered, panicles, sometimes racemes, corymbs, or subumbellate.
→ 14
14. Leaves persistent, leathery; carpels basally adnate to hypanthium.
→ 15
15. Leaf margins flat; flowers 15–20 mm diam.; pedicels short or nearly absent; hypanthia usually tomentose; stamens 20; carpels connate, styles (2–)5; pomes soft apricot yellow, 20–30 mm (diam.).
Eriobotrya
15. Leaf margins revolute; flowers 10 mm diam.; pedicels present; hypanthia glabrous or weakly floccose; stamens 10; carpels distinct, styles 2 or 3; pomes usually bright red, sometimes yellow, 5–10 mm
Heteromeles
14. Leaves usually deciduous, sometimes semipersistent or persistent (then margin entire), membranous to ± leathery; carpels adnate to all or 1/3–1/2 of hypanthium.
→ 16
16. Pome flesh with stones or sclereids.
→ 17
17. Inflorescences terminal, 6–400+-flowered flat-topped or rounded panicles; flowers opening after leaf expansion, 5–17 mm diam.; sepals erect or ascending; leaves pinnately divided, sometimes simple or lobed.
Sorbus
17. Inflorescences terminal on short shoots, 4–9-flowered racemes or simple corymbs, umbel-like; flowers developing with or before leaves, 15–45 mm diam.; sepals reflexed; leaves simple.
Pyrus
16. Pome flesh without stones.
→ 18
18. Stipules adnate to petiole, persistent
Aronia
18. Stipules free, caducous or deciduous.
→ 19
19. Leaves persistent or deciduous; inflorescences corymbose or subumbellate; pomes red or black.
Photinia
19. Leaves deciduous; inflorescences racemes; pomes bluish or purplish to nearly black, pinkish or maroon-purple, dark purple-blue, or brownish
Amelanchier
Source FNA vol. 9, p. 645. Author: Christopher S. Campbell. FNA vol. 9, p. 424. Author: Luc Brouillet.
Parent taxa Rosaceae > subfam. Amygdaloideae > tribe Maleae Rosaceae > subfam. Amygdaloideae
Subordinate taxa
M. denticulata
Amelanchier, Aronia, Chaenomeles, Cotoneaster, Crataegus, Cydonia, Eriobotrya, Heteromeles, Malacomeles, Malus, Mespilus, Peraphyllum, Photinia, Pyracantha, Pyrus, Sorbus, Vauquelinia
Synonyms Cotoneaster section M. family rosaceae tribe Pyreae
Name authority (Decaisne) Decaisne: Ann. Gén. Hort. 23: 156. (1882) Small: Man. S.E. Fl., 632. (1933)
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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