Aronia prunifolia

Aronia prunifolia, called the purple chokeberry, is a North American species of shrubs in the rose family. It is native to eastern Canada and to the eastern and central United States, from Nova Scotia west to Ontario and Wisconsin, south as far as western South Carolina with an isolated population reported in southern Alabama.[1]

Aronia prunifolia
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Rosales
Family:	Rosaceae
Genus:	Aronia
Species:	A. prunifolia
Binomial name
Aronia prunifolia (Marshall) Rehder 1938
Synonyms
Synonymy Mespilus prunifolia Marshall 1785 Adenorachis atropurpurea (Britton) Nieuwl. Aronia atropurpurea Britton Aronia floribunda (Lindl.) Sweet Crataegus arbutifolia Lam. Pyrus atropurpurea (Britton) L.H.Bailey Pyrus floribunda Lindl.

Some authors consider this to be a hybrid rather than a full-fledged species but it does grow in places where neither parent is present (most of Michigan for example). This independence merits acceptance as a full species. This sort of thing is not unusual; many species of plants originated as hybrids.[2]

Aronia prunifolia is a branching shrub forming clumps by means of stems forming from the roots. Flowers are white or pink, producing purple fruits. Many people consider the fruits to be foul-tasting.

References

1. "Aronia prunifolia". County-level distribution map from the North American Plant Atlas (NAPA). Biota of North America Program (BONAP). 2014.
2. Alan S. Weakley (April 2008). "Flora of the Carolinas, Virginia, and Georgia, and Surrounding Areas".