Sorbus austriaca — Edible Plant Database

What to Eat

Edible parts: Fruit

The fruit can be eaten raw or used cooked in preserves. It has a mealy texture but a pleasant, semi-sweet flavour when fully ripe. The fruits measure about 13mm across and are borne in fairly large bunches, making harvesting easy.

Known Hazards

Where to Find It

It is a temperate plant.

Austria, Europe, Hungary, Switzerland,

Countries: Andorra, Albania, Austria, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Belgium, Bulgaria, Belarus, Switzerland, Cyprus, Czechia, Germany, Denmark, Estonia, Spain, Finland, France, United Kingdom, Greece, Croatia, Hungary, Ireland, Iceland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Latvia, Monaco, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Russia, Sweden, Slovenia, Slovakia, San Marino, Ukraine

How to Identify

Deciduous tree reaching 10m tall. Hardy to UK zone 6, frost-hardy. Hermaphroditic flowers May to June; seeds ripen September to October. Adapts to light sandy, medium loamy, and heavy clay soils with good drainage. Tolerates mildly acid to basic pH. Grows in semi-shade to full sun and prefers moist soil. Withstands strong winds but not maritime exposure.

How to Grow

Succeeds in most reasonably good soils in an open sunny position. Tolerates light shade, though it fruits better in a sunny position. This species is closely related to S. intermedia. Plants are susceptible to fireblight. Trees seen at Wisley and at Cambridge Botanical Gardens in September 1993 were bearing very good crops of fruit. The name of this species might have been mis-spelt, it could be S. austrica.

Propagation: Seed is best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame. Where seed is plentiful, it can be sown in an outdoor seedbed. Stored seed benefits from 2 weeks of warm stratification followed by 14–16 weeks of cold stratification, so sow as early in the year as possible. Prick out seedlings into individual pots once large enough to handle. Top-growth is very slow in the first year or two as the plant focuses on root development. Keep seedlings in pots in a cold frame through their first winter, then plant out into permanent positions in late spring.

Medicinal Uses

None known

Other Uses

None known Special Uses

Wikipedia

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