Purple Crab
From KeyToNature
(Redirected from Japanese Crab)
Malus x floribunda
Rose family (Rosaceae)
Origin: Garden hybrid
Description: Tree up to 6m, occasionally larger. Leaves ovate with coarsely and sharply toothed margins, hairy beneath; leaves on flowering shoots have large teeth or even 3 to 5 lobes. Flowers 2.5-3cm across, in clusters of 4 to 7, deep pink in bud but opening paler pink. Fruit 10mm, globose, yellow when ripe.
Comments: A hybrid of unknown parentage. Unlike most other species of Malus, Japanese crab has sepals which fall from the ripening fruit. As a consequence, the fruits are easily mistaken for cherries (Prunus species).
Similar trees:
- Other crabs
- Wild cherry (especially when in fruit)
