1578 The Trees of Great Britain and Ireland 



267 (1899). The latter is said to have been found wild in the Erz Mountains ; and 

 in a specimen at Kew, obtained from Spath in 1906, the irregular toothing is almost 

 confined to the leaflets on the barren branches. 



10. A variety with variegated leaves is mentioned by Loudon ; and another 

 with yellowish foliage is occasionally seen, which is named var. Dirkenii or 

 var. Dirkenii aiirea. 



Hybrids 



The following, which were formerly considered to be varieties of P. Aucuparia, 

 are of undoubted hybrid origin.^ They differ from this species, in having the 

 uppermost three or five leaflets united together into one segment : — 



1. Pyrus satureiifolia, Ascherson and Graebner, op. cit. 106 (1906). 



Sorbus satureiifolia, Koehne, Deut. Dendrologie, 248 (1893). 



A small tree. Leaflets nearly glabrous beneath, not decurrent on the rachis ; 

 the uppermost three united into one segment. 



This appears to be identical with Sorbus neuillyensis, Dippel, Laubholzkunde, iii. 

 370 (1893), of which there is a tree at Kew, about 20 ft. high, obtained from Simon- 

 Louis in 1900. 



Sorbus saturejcefolia, Koch, Dendrologie, i. 189 (1869), is similar in the shape of 

 the foliage, but the leaflets are described as being tomentose on both surfaces. This 

 appears to be identical with Sorbus subserrata, Opiz, in Flora, vii. suppl, 13 (1824) : 

 and is said by Ascherson and Graebner to be inconstant as regards the union of 

 the upper leaflets. 



2. Pyrus decurrens, Ascherson and Graebner, op. cit. 106 (1906). 



Pyrus lanuginosa, Hort. (not De CandoUe ^). 

 Sorbus decurrens, Hedlund, op. cit. 49 (1901). 



A small tree. Leaflets tomentose beneath, more or less decurrent on the 

 rachis ; the upper three, five, or seven leaflets united into one segment. 



This is represented at Kew by a tree about 25 ft. high, which is of considerable 

 age, and apparently less vigorous in growth than P. Aucuparia. 



Distribution 



P. Aucuparia is widely distributed throughout almost all Europe;* but does 

 not occur in Portugal, southern Spain, southern Italy,* Dalmatia, and Greece. It is 

 most common in northern regions, extending as far north as Iceland, the North 

 Cape, and the Kola Peninsula ; but is reduced to a low shrub beyond lat. 67° in 



■ Pyrus pinnatifida, Ehrhart, described in Vol. I. p. 163, is usually considered to be a hybrid between P. Aucuparia 

 and P. intermedia ; but Schneider, Laubholzkunde, i. 691 (1906), who describes it under the name Sorbus hybrida, Linnaeus, 

 believes it to be a true species, as it comes true from seed. 2 Qf^ y^r. lanuginosa, p. 1577. 



3 The mountain ashes resembling P. Aucuparia in the Caucasus, Siberia, and western Himalayas, are considered to be 

 three distinct species by Schneider and by Hedlund. 



* P. prtsmorsa, Gussone, Fl. Sicul. Syn. i. 561 (1842), is considered by Schneider to be a distinct species, inhabiting 

 Sicily and the Madeira Islands. 



