The whitebeams are members of the family Rosaceae, comprising the genus Aria. They are deciduous trees with simple or lobed leaves, arranged alternately. They are related to the rowans, and many of the endemic restricted-range apomictic microspecies of whitebeam in Europe are thought to derive from hybrids between the common whitebeam and the European rowan. Some are also thought to be hybrids with the wild service tree, and the service tree of Fontainebleau found in French woodlands. The best known species is the common whitebeam, a columnar tree which grows to 25 m tall by 10 m broad, with clusters of white flowers in spring followed by speckled red berries in autumn (fall).

Appearance

The surface of the leaf is an unremarkable mid-green, but the underside is almost white (hence the name) transforming the appearance of the tree in strong winds, as noted by the poet Meredith: "flashing as in gusts the sudden-lighted whitebeam". It is also described as the "wind-beat whitebeam" in Gerard Manley Hopkins' poem "The Starlight Night".

Ecology

The berries are a favourite of birds, though less palatable (drier, less juicy) than rowan berries. Whitebeams are sometimes used as larval food plants by species of Lepidoptera, including the short-cloaked moth.

Uses

These trees are often grown in parks and large gardens. The cultivars A. edulis 'Lutescens' and A. edulis 'Majestica' have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. The tough, hard wood is a deep orange when wet, and pale yellow after drying. The fruit is edible, but only when nearly rotten.

Taxonomy

The following species are recognised in the genus Aria: