Sorbus decora, commonly known as the northern mountain ash, showy mountain-ash,[1] Greenland mountain-ash, and dogberry, is a species of deciduous shrub or very small tree native to northeastern North America.
Sorbus decora grows 4- tall. Its leaves are odd-pinnately compound, with 11 - 17 leaflets. Each leaflet is 5- long and 1- wide. All parts are hairless to slightly hairy. Flowers are borne in 125- to more than 400-flowered panicles 6- across. Each flower is 5- across and has five white petals 2.5- long, 14 - 20 stamens, and carpels with 3 - 4 styles. The fruits (pomes) are bright red to orange-red and 4- across.
Sorbus decora occurs throughout the Laurentian Mixed Forest Province, the New England-Acadian forest region, the eastern Canadian boreal forests and Greenland. It cannot be found north of 62°15′N, which confines it the southern tip of Greenland, generally deeper up the western fjords, such as the Qinngua Valley.[2] [3]
Sorbus decora is very similar to the closely related American mountain-ash (Sorbus americana). Like the American mountain-ash, the showy mountain-ash has odd-pinnately compound leaves and often large clusters of flowers and fruits. Showy mountain-ash can be distinguished by its shiny, sticky buds,[4] and its slightly larger flowers and fruit. It is said to bloom a week earlier.
It is often cultivated as an ornamental plant for its cold-hardiness, its attractive flowers, and its large clusters of small red berry-like pomes.
The fruits are an important source of food for wildlife, particularly birds in the winter and early spring.