Tall shrub or low tree to 10 m, usually thorny; twigs tomentose; lvs firm, ovate-oblong to broadly elliptic, 6-10 cm, coarsely serrate and usually also shallowly lobed, acute or short-acuminate, usually persistently pubescent beneath; hypanthium and pedicels densely tomentose; fls 3.5-4 cm wide; anthers pink or salmon-color; fr subglobose, green, 2-3 cm; 2n=34. Woods and thickets; n. Ind., s. Wis., and se. Minn. to S.D., Neb., Tex., and La.; disjunct ? in Mich. (Malus i.) A hybrid with P. malus is P. سoulardii L. H. Bailey.
Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.
