''Torminalis'' is a genus of plants in the rose family,

Rosaceae Rosaceae (), the rose family, is a family of flowering plants that includes 4,828 known species in 91 genera. The name is derived from the type genus '' Rosa''. The family includes herbs, shrubs, and trees. Most species are deciduous, but som ...

. The genus was formerly included within the genus ''

Sorbus ''Sorbus'' is a genus of over 100 species of trees and shrubs in the rose family, Rosaceae. Species of ''Sorbus'' ('' s.str.'') are commonly known as rowan or mountain-ash. The genus used to include species commonly known as whitebeam, cheque ...

'' as the

section Section, Sectioning, or Sectioned may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Section (music), a complete, but not independent, musical idea * Section (typography), a subdivision, especially of a chapter, in books and documents ** Section sig ...

''Torminaria'', but the simple-leafed species traditionally classified in ''Sorbus'' are now considered to form a separate monophyletic group. It is

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unisp ...

, being represented by the single species ''Torminalis glaberrima'', commonly known as wild service tree, chequers, and checker tree. This tree is native to Europe, parts of northern Africa and western Asia. A possible second species in the genus has been identified through DNA analysis, but a new scientific description for it has not yet been written.

Description

''Torminalis glaberrima'' is a medium-sized

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and botany, the term deciduous () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed Leaf, leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

tree growing to about 30 m (100 ft) tall, with a trunk up to 1.3 m in diameter. The

bark Bark may refer to: Common meanings * Bark (botany), an outer layer of a woody plant such as a tree or stick * Bark (sound), a vocalization of some animals (which is commonly the dog) Arts and entertainment * ''Bark'' (Jefferson Airplane album), ...

is smooth and grey when young, becoming scaly and flaking away in squarish plates to reveal darker brown layers when about 30 years old. Young twigs are lightly hairy, quickly becoming glabrous, and brownish in colour. Winter identification is made easier by the buds, which are green and pea-sized with obvious brown-edged scales. Sorbus torminalis bark

The

leaves A leaf (: leaves) is a principal appendage of the stem of a vascular plant, usually borne laterally above ground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, stem, ...

are long and broad with a petiole, dark green on both sides, with five to nine acute lobes; the basal pair of lobes are spreading, the rest more forward-pointing and decreasing in size to the leaf apex, and with finely toothed margins; the undersides have small hairs when young, but both sides are smooth and shiny when older; the autumn colour is yellow to red-brown. The

flower Flowers, also known as blooms and blossoms, are the reproductive structures of flowering plants ( angiosperms). Typically, they are structured in four circular levels, called whorls, around the end of a stalk. These whorls include: calyx, m ...

s are in diameter, with five white petals and 20 creamy-white stamens; they are produced in

corymb Corymb is a botanical term for an inflorescence with the flowers growing in such a fashion that the outermost are borne on longer pedicels than the inner, bringing all flowers up to a common level. A corymb has a flattish top with a superficial re ...

s diameter in late spring to early summer, and are hermaphroditic and insect pollinated. The

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants (angiosperms) that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which angiosperms disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particular have long propaga ...

is a globose to ovoid

pome In botany, a pome is a type of fruit produced by flowering plants in the subtribe Malinae of the family Rosaceae. Pome fruits consist of a central "core" containing multiple small seeds, which is enveloped by a tough membrane and surrounded by a ...

10–15 mm in diameter, greenish to russet or brown, patterned with small pale

lenticel A lenticel is a porous tissue consisting of cells with large intercellular spaces in the periderm of the secondarily thickened organs and the Bark (botany), bark of woody stems and roots of gymnosperms and dicotyledonous flowering plants. It func ...

spots when mature in mid to late autumn.Mitchell, A. F. (1974). ''A Field Guide to the Trees of Britain and Northern Europe''. Collins Blamey, M. & Grey-Wilson, C. (1989). ''Flora of Britain and Northern Europe''. Sorbus torminalis leaves kz

Taxonomy

Wild Service-tree was first named by

Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné,#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. was a Swedish biologist and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming o ...

as ''Crataegus torminalis'' in ''

Species Plantarum ' (Latin for "The Species of Plants") is a book by Carl Linnaeus, originally published in 1753, which lists every species of plant known at the time, classified into genus, genera. It is the first work to consistently apply binomial nomenclature ...

'' in 1753, but of course it was known long before that. Pre-Linnean polynomials include ''Crataegus foliis cordatis acutis: lacinulis acutis serratis'', "the hawthorn with sharp cordate leaves ndsharp serrated lobes", from '' Hortus Cliffortianus'', 1737, and ''Mespilus, apii folio, sylvestris non spinosa'' "the spineless mespil of the woods, with celery leaves", from Bauhin's ''Pinax Theatri Botanici'', 1623. Which genus the wild service-tree should be placed in has been a matter of debate for centuries. Apart from Linnaeus's original ''Crataegus'', it has been placed in ''Pyrus'', ''Malus'', ''Mespilus'', ''Torminaria'' and various other genera over the years. Until recently it was commonly known as ''Sorbus torminalis'' but since about 2010 it has become increasingly apparent from genetic studies that it is not very closely related to the pinnate-leaved plants in that genus. The currently accepted name was published in 2017 and is endorsed by more recent studies. However, there is still some uncertainty about whether it should be in a genus on its own or combined with some other closely-related plants. There are two varieties: * ''Torminalis glaberrima'' var. ''torminalis''. Europe, northwest Africa. * ''Torminalis glaberrima'' var. ''caucasica''. Caucasus and Alborz Mountains. Leaves less deeply lobed than in var. ''torminalis''. ''Torminalis glaberrima'' is a sexually reproducing

diploid Ploidy () is the number of complete sets of chromosomes in a cell, and hence the number of possible alleles for autosomal and pseudoautosomal genes. Here ''sets of chromosomes'' refers to the number of maternal and paternal chromosome copies, ...

species that forms diploid and polyploid hybrids with members of the genus ''

Aria In music, an aria (, ; : , ; ''arias'' in common usage; diminutive form: arietta, ; : ariette; in English simply air (music), air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrument (music), instrumental or orchestral accompan ...

'' (

whitebeam The whitebeams are members of the family Rosaceae, tribe Malinae, comprising a number of deciduous simple or lobe-leaved species formerly lumped together within ''Sorbus'' s.l. Many whitebeams are the result of extensive intergeneric hybridisa ...

s). A number of often very localised stable

apomictic In botany, apomixis is asexual reproduction, asexual development of seed or embryo without Fertilisation, fertilization. However, other definitions include replacement of the seed by a plantlet or replacement of the flower by bulbils. Apomictic ...

polyploid species of ultimately hybrid origin between ''Sorbus torminalis'' and various species in the genus ''Aria'' occur in Europe, including '' Sorbus latifolia'' (service tree of Fontainebleau), and '' S. bristoliensis'' (Bristol whitebeam). They are now classified as the ''

Karpatiosorbus ''Karpatiosorbus'' (Synonymy: ''Sorbus'' subgenus ''Tormaria'' Májovsky & Bernátová = ''S''. subgenus ''Aria'' x subgenus ''Torminaria'') is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rosaceae, native to Europe, including Crimea, and Algeria. S ...

'' genus.

Etymology

The tree's Latin name, ''torminalis'', means "good for

colic Colic or cholic () is a form of pain that starts and stops abruptly. It occurs due to muscular contractions of a hollow tube (small and large intestine, gall bladder, ureter, etc.) in an attempt to relieve an obstruction by forcing content ou ...

". The name "service-tree" is thought to be derived from the Latin word for beer, '' cervesa''. This in turn is an adaptation of the (hypothetical)

Proto-Celtic Proto-Celtic, or Common Celtic, is the hypothetical ancestral proto-language of all known Celtic languages, and a descendant of Proto-Indo-European. It is not attested in writing but has been partly Linguistic reconstruction, reconstructed throu ...

term *kurmi, and was introduced into the Roman language by

Pliny the Elder Gaius Plinius Secundus (AD 23/24 79), known in English as Pliny the Elder ( ), was a Roman Empire, Roman author, Natural history, naturalist, and naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and a friend of the Roman emperor, emperor Vesp ...

in his ''Natural History'' of 77 AD. Thus, the words "sorb", "Sorbus", and "serve/service" all come ultimately from the Celtic word for beer, and are applied to this plant because the fruits of the closely-related true service tree were used to flavour that beverage in ancient

Gaul Gaul () was a region of Western Europe first clearly described by the Roman people, Romans, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and parts of Switzerland, the Netherlands, Germany, and Northern Italy. It covered an area of . Ac ...

. In

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...

, *kurmi became ''syrfe'', either by re-importation from Vulgar Latin or directly from the Celtic, and has since morphed into a variety of forms, including "Surrey". Another English common name is "chequers (or checkers) tree", for which a variety of origins have been proposed. Some authors have suggested that the pattern of dots on the fruits,''

Oxford English Dictionary The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the principal historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP), a University of Oxford publishing house. The dictionary, which published its first editio ...

'' or the appearance of the bark, is similar to that of a

checkers Checkers (American English), also known as draughts (; English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English), is a group of Abstract strategy game, strategy board games for two players which involve forward movements of uniform game ...

board or a pub sign;G. J. Monson-Fitzjohn gives three possible origins for chequers as a pub name: the chequer board suggests the passing away of odd hours by a game of "draughts"; others were named from the custom of painting signposts sometimes found outside pubs in alternate black and white squares; and others from the "chequy field" of the coat of arms of a local landowner. 270 hotels, tavern and inns then bore the name. – Monson-Fitzjohn, G. J. (1926) ''Quaint Signs of Olde Inns''. London: Herbert Jenkins (reissued by Senate, London, 1994 ); pp. 34, 45 but it could simply be that "chequers" and "chokers" are more evolutions of the original ''cervesa''.

Distribution and habitat

It is found from Great Britain (

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

) east to Denmark and Poland, south to northwest Africa, and southeast to southwest Asia from Asia Minor to the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

and

Alborz The Alborz ( ) range, also spelled as Alburz, Elburz or Elborz, is a mountain range in northern Iran that stretches from the border of Azerbaijan along the western and entire southern coast of the Caspian Sea and finally runs northeast and merge ...

mountains.Rushforth, K. (1999). ''Trees of Britain and Europe''. Collins . The wild service tree favours deep fertile soils, but can tolerate a wide range of soil conditions, from chalky, superficial, dry soils to temporarily waterlogged soils, often found alongside the true service tree. It can adapt to a variety of climatic conditions, but occurs most often in lowlands. Wild service tree is a light-demanding species, often out-competed by other

hardwood Hardwood is wood from Flowering plant, angiosperm trees. These are usually found in broad-leaved temperate and tropical forests. In temperate and boreal ecosystem, boreal latitudes they are mostly deciduous, but in tropics and subtropics mostl ...

species. It is relatively rare and in

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

is now usually confined to pockets of

ancient woodland In the United Kingdom, ancient woodland is that which has existed continuously since 1600 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland (or 1750 in Scotland). The practice of planting woodland was uncommon before those dates, so a wood present in 1600 i ...

, although it can also be found growing in

hedgerow A hedge or hedgerow is a line of closely spaced (3 feet or closer) shrubs and sometimes trees, planted and trained to form a barrier or to mark the boundary of an area, such as between neighbouring properties. Hedges that are used to separate ...

s. It can often be found associated with

oak An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisp ...

and ash woods. In Britain, summer temperatures are often too low for the seeds to ripen, so its principal method of propagation is by suckers. Its Ellenberg values in Britain are L=4, F=5, R=6, N=5 and S=0, which means it grows in shady, moist woodland on neutral soils and with moderate fertility, and no tolerance for salt.

Ecology

The fruits are eaten by many birds and a few mammals, making the tree ecologically important. There are many insects associated with the wild service tree. The goat moth, a moth with the second largest larvae in the UK, deposits its eggs on the bark of the wild service tree. After hatching, the larvae burrow into the tree, feeding on the inner wood, creating large, visible tunnels, causing substantial harm and weakening the tree. Over time, the tunnels can damage the tree's structure, making it prone to diseases, decay, other infestations such as fungal infections or attacks from bark beetles like ''Scolytus mali''. In cases of severe damage, the tree may eventually die. Wood infested by the goat moth has a strong vinegar scent, with a substance described as "fermenting juice" present at the base of the trunk. The phloeophagous (phloem feeding) black beetle, '' Scolytus mali'', causes damage by chewing through bark to access the phloem. It has a symbiotic relationship with a fungus (from the genus ''Ophiostoma'') in which the beetles carry the spores beneath the bark, and as the fungus grows within the tree infected, it helps to break down the tree's tissues which makes it easier for the beetle to feed on the phloem. This fungus is associated with tree diseases such as Dutch elm disease. Signs that a tree is under attack are lots of tiny entrance holes on the outside of the tree bark, and gnarled tunnels on the underneath of the bark. However, these insects are minute, and the holes can be inconspicuous, meaning it isn't always obvious a tree is infested. The wild service tree also supports a mite, ''Eriophyes torminalis'' Nalepa (1926), which feeds solely on the leaves of this species, making it monophagous. When the mite feeds on the leaf it injects saliva into the surface of the leaf, causing the plant to respond by growing abnormal tissue around the feeding area. This forms hollow galls, which look like brown blisters on both sides of the leaf, encysting the microscopic mites. Eriophyes torminalis leaf galls

Uses

The wild service tree is one of the most valuable

hardwoods Hardwood is wood from angiosperm trees. These are usually found in broad-leaved temperate and tropical forests. In temperate and boreal latitudes they are mostly deciduous, but in tropics and subtropics mostly evergreen. Hardwood (which comes ...

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

. The wood is fine-grained, very dense and has good bending strength. It was used in the past to make

screws A screw is an externally helical threaded fastener capable of being tightened or released by a twisting force (torque) to the screw head, head. The most common uses of screws are to hold objects together and there are many forms for a variety ...

for winepresses, billiard cue sticks,

musical instruments A musical instrument is a device created or adapted to make musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can be considered a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. A person who pl ...

and turnery. Today, it is usually only used for decorative veneers. The fruit, sometimes called "chequers", are edible and taste similar to dates, although they are now rarely collected for food. They are usually too

astringent An astringent (sometimes called adstringent) is a chemical that shrinks or constricts body tissues. The word derives from the Latin '' adstringere'', which means "to bind fast". Astringency, the dry, puckering or numbing mouthfeel caused by t ...

to eat until they are over-ripe and bletted. They were traditionally known as a herbal remedy for colic. Before the introduction of

hops Hops are the flowers (also called seed cones or strobiles) of the hop plant ''Humulus lupulus'', a member of the Cannabaceae family of flowering plants. They are used primarily as a bittering, flavouring, and stability agent in beer, to whic ...

, the fruit were used to flavour beer.

Gallery

Sorbus torminalis Trunk and canopy.jpg, Trunk and leaf canopy Sorbus torminalis 190513.jpg, Flowers ElsbeerFrucht.jpeg, Foliage and fruit Sorbus torminalis Weinsberg 20070929 5.jpg, Ripe fruit Sorbus torminalis Weinsberg 20070929 8.jpg, Autumn leaf colour

References

External links

Wild Service Tree
at rhs.org.uk *
Sorbus torminalis
' – distribution map, genetic conservation units and related resources.

European Forest Genetic Resources Programme European Forest Genetic Resources Programme (EUFORGEN) is an international network that promotes the conservation and sustainable use of forest genetic resources in Europe as an integral part of sustainable forest management. It was established ...

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