Pyrus prunifolium. botanicayjardines (Accessed 9/2014).

Pyrus prunifolia is a small tree, young twigs finely hairy. 

Leaves alternate, elliptic to egg-shaped, 5-10 cm long, tip pointed, base blunt, margin sharply toothed, hairy on veins below, stalks slender, 2-5 cm; leaves expand late April-early May (Britton 1874). 

Flowers white, 3 cm wide, on individual stalks 2-3.5 cm long, very slender; blooms mid-April (Britton 1874). 

Fruit fleshy over cartilaginous, seedy core, rounded, about 2 cm diameter, red or yellow, top with persistent sepals, (not depressed) joined at base into a short, fleshy tube, lobes longer than tube, narrow, pointed, fruit stem inserted into a depression, persistent into winter (Rehder, 1986). 

Wetland status: NL. 

Frequency in NYC: Very infrequent in natural areas. 

Origin: E. Asia. 

Habitat: Usually an ornamental but often adjacent to natural areas. 

Notes: Many hybrids and cultivars.