Much like no. 6 [Crataegus succulenta Schrad.], but more prominently hairy and with larger lvs; twigs villous or tomentose when young; lvs 5-9 נ4-8 cm, short-villous above and usually also beneath; petiole 1-1.5 cm; infl ±villous or tomentose. S. Ont. and N.Y. to Ga. and Ala., w. to Minn., Kans., and Tex. (C. fontanesiana; C. whitakeri)
Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.
Leaves ovate, oblong-ovate or elliptic in outline, mostly 4-8 cm long, and 3-5 cm wide, pointed or short-acuminate at the apex, acute or abruptly contracted at the base and attenuate into winged petioles, sharply serrate on the upper three fourths of the blades, usually with 3-5 pairs of obscure or shallow triangular lobes, mostly above the middle, firm to subcoriaceous and with veins impressed above at maturity, scabrate above when young, and permanently pubescent at least on the veins beneath; petioles usually 1-2 cm long; flowers 12-15 mm in diameter, in loose, compound, tomentose, mostly 10-20-flowered corymbs; stamens about 20; anthers pink; fruit oblong, ovoid or nearly globose, 7-10 mm in diameter, pubescent, scarlet or orange red, flesh thin, becoming mellow; calyx relatively large, elevated; calyx lobes lanceolate, glandular-serrate, reflexed or often deciduous; nutlets 2-3, deeply pitted on the ventral surfaces. A small tree up to 6 m high, or often an arborescent shrub, with dark, slightly scaly bark and erect or ascending branches, forming a narrow pyramidal crown; branchlets usually villous when young, soon glabrate, olive brown, becoming gray, nearly unarmed or sparingly armed with long, slender thorns. Frequent and generally distributed in Indiana, growing in thickets or open woods, usually along streams or lakes.