Hedlundia harziana, or Harz's whitebeam,Blaich, G. (n.d.). Sorbus harziana N.MEY. Retrieved September 30, 2026, from https://www.guenther-blaich.de/pflseite.php?par=Sorbus+harziana is an apomictic speciesSorbus harziana N. Mey. Harz’ Mehlbeere. (n.d.). Botanischer Informationsknoten Bayern. Retrieved September 30, 2026, from https://daten.bayernflora.de/de/info_pflanzen.php?taxnr=26249 of tree endemic to Bavaria, Germany.Hedlundia harziana (N.Mey.) Sennikov & Kurtto. (n.d.). Plants of the World Online. Retrieved September 30, 2026, from https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:77164920-1 It is extremely rareSorbus harziana N. Mey. (2026, January 14). Rote Liste Zentrum. Retrieved September 30, 2026, from https://www.rote-liste-zentrum.de/detailseite/?species_uuid=67115571-f2bd-4585-bd25-a02f8f66bc13BfN - Bundesamt für Naturschutz. (n.d.). Sorbus harziana N. Mey. (Harzsche Mehlbeere). FloraWeb. Retrieved September 30, 2026, from https://www.floraweb.de/php/artenhome.php?name-use-id=26249 and threatened with extinction. It arose via hybridisation of Aria edulis with Sorbus aucuparia after the last ice age.Bäumler, M., Hacker, H. H., Hartwich, R., & Wimmer, N. (n.d.). Flora und Fauna am Obermain Spektakuläres, Seltenes und Schönes Eine naturkundliche Zusammenschau Einleitung und Gliederung.
Description Vegetative characteristics Hedlundia harziana is an up to 8 m tall tree or shrub. The leaves of the short twigs are slightly lobed. The lobes have an obtuse apex. The more deeply lobed leaves of the long twigs have 10–12 pairs of lateral veins. The leaf base is acute or cuneate. The abaxial leaf surface is pubescent with greyish green hairs.Meyer, T. (n.d.). Weismain- Mehlbeere (Sorbus harziana N. Meyer). Blumen in Schwaben. Retrieved September 30, 2026, from https://www.blumeninschwaben.de/Zweikeimblaettrige/Rosengewaechse/lappen_stumpf.htm#Weismain-%20Mehlbeere Generative characteristics The stamens are longer than the styles. The flower has three styles. The bright red, ovoid, 1 cm big fruit bears few lenticels.
Taxonomy It was first described as Sorbus harziana by Norbert Meyer in 2005.Sorbus harziana N.Mey. (n.d.). International Plant Names Index. Retrieved September 30, 2026, from https://www.ipni.org/n/77070657-1 It was moved to the genus Hedlundia as Hedlundia harziana by Alexander Nikolaevitsch Sennikov and Arto Kurtto in 2017.Sennikov, A. N., & Kurtto, A. (2017). A phylogenetic checklist of Sorbus s.l. (Rosaceae) in Europe. Memoranda Societatis pro Fauna et Flora Fennica, 93, 1-78.Hedlundia harziana (N.Mey.) Sennikov & Kurtto. (n.d.-b). International Plant Names Index. Retrieved September 30, 2026, from https://www.ipni.org/n/77164920-1 The type specimen was collected by N. Meyer and O. Angerer in Bavaria, Germany on the 19 May 2001. Etymology The specific epithet harziana honours the German botanist Carl Otto Harz.
Distribution and habitat It is endemic to Bavaria, Germany, where it occurs in a small area of only 1.7 km2 in open pine forest, on the edges of deciduous forest, and on rocks at an elevation of 450 m above sea level.
Conservation It is a critically endangered species with a small population of only 30 mature trees. It doesn't have special legal protection. It is cultivated on the ex situ conservation collections of the Botanical Garden Erlangen, of the Botanischer Garten der Universität Regensburg, and in the private collection of Karsten Horn.Botanische Gärten und andere Halter. (n.d.). Verband Botanischer Gärten. Retrieved September 30, 2026, from https://www.verband-botanischer-gaerten.de/Arbeitsgruppen/Botanischer_Artenschutz/Botanische_Gaerten_und_andere_Halter.html
References