Moixera de gilla (Catalan) | Cornabois, escornabois (Galician) | Serveira-dos-pasarinheiros, serverira brava (Portuguese) | Serbal de los cazadores (Spanish) | Sorbier des oiseaux (French)
A medium sized tree belonging to the rose family and distributed throughout Europe, from Iceland to Russia and the Iberian Peninsula, tolerant of the cold it can be found at high altitudes.
A deciduous tree of medium height reaching up to 15 m and even 20 m, although rarely, finishing off with a large pyramidal or oval crown.
The leaves are arranged in an alternate form along the length of the stem or rachis, are and imparipinnate (borne in pairs), oblong with serrated borders and has between 9 and 15 leaflets, measuring 2,5-6 cm up to 9 cm.
The inflorescence (clusters) are produced in large Corymb terminals of between 8-15cm in diameter with more than 250 flowers.
The fruit, ripening between September and October, is a pome fruit with a stone or pips, small and ranging between 4-8 mm in diameter, fleshy and globular and bright orange and coral red in colour. They are soft and juicy, making them easy food for birds, primarily the Bohemian Waxwing (Bombycilla garrulus) and the Common blackbird (Turdus merula), who will later go on to disseminate the rowan seeds through their droppings. Their fruit is also used in processing Russian vodka.
The rowan tree in Spanish is called the Serbal de Cazadores, loosely translated as the ´hunters rowan tree´, so called because its fruit have been used as bait to attract and hunt birds.
On the Iberian Peninsula, they tend to grow within fur, beech and oak forests.
Finally, the rowan is a hardy tree, capable of surviving in all kinds of situations, except in dense shade and in chalky ground, preferring rich, deep and well drained soils. The best moment for planting is between autumn and spring, avoiding the coldest days and on receiving enough sunlight, its leaves and fruit have an illustrious aspect.
