Japanese rowan

Japanese rowan: how do you recognise it?

Habit

Small tree with a narrow, upright crown that broadens a little with age; up to about 8 m tall and 5 m wide.

Leaf

Pinnate, with 11–15 narrow, pointed, toothed leaflets; glossy dark green, turning red to purplish red in autumn.

Flower

Small white flowers in flat heads, in May.

Fruit

Round, orange-red to red berries about 6–8 mm across, in large clusters from late summer.

Buds

Glossy, sticky winter buds that make the tree recognisable even when bare.

Roots

Fairly shallow: it dries out quickly in hot, dry summers.

Flowering: May · Harvest and fruit: August–October · Plants: March–April and October–December · Pruning: December–February

Why grow it?

• One of the finest autumn colours among small trees: red, orange and purple.
• Heads of white flowers in May that attract bees and other insects.
• Clusters of orange-red berries from late summer, a feast for blackbirds, thrushes and sometimes waxwings.
• Narrow and compact: it suits a smaller garden or a narrow strip too.
• Low maintenance: pruning is hardly ever needed.

Japanese rowan: where does it grow best?

• Sun or partial shade; the autumn colour is best in sun.
• Light, humus-rich soil: sand or loam, preferably acid to neutral. It grows less well on chalky soil.
• Moist and well-drained; it dislikes long droughts and waterlogging.
• Allow 4–5 m of space; it fits well in a narrow garden or along a drive.

Light

Sun and partial shade

Soil type

Sand or loam

Acidity

Acid or neutral

Moisture

Normal

Size

8 m tall, 5 m wide

Hardiness

Hardy (to -30 °C)

Goes well with

• Heather: Likes the same light, acid soil and flowers in late summer.
• Japanese forest grass: A soft, golden-green underplanting that also colours in autumn.
• Japanese anemone: Flowers in September beneath the colouring berries.
• Ferns: Fresh green at the base, in the light shade of the crown.
• Crocus: Flowers in spring under the still bare tree.

Japanese rowan: when and how to plant it?

Plant in March–April and October–December.

1. Plant in March–April or from October to December, when the soil is not frozen or waterlogged.
2. Dig a hole twice as wide as the root ball and mix some leaf mould or compost into the excavated soil.
3. Set the tree at the same depth as it was in the pot or nursery: the root collar stays at soil level.
4. Drive in an angled stake on the windward side and tie the trunk loosely.
5. Firm the soil well and water straight away with a few buckets.
6. Spread a mulch of leaf mould or wood chips around the base, without touching the trunk.

Care

Water

For the first two years, water regularly in dry spells. Later on, an extra bucket during long droughts.

Feeding

A layer of compost or leaf mould in spring is enough.

Mulching

A layer of leaf mould or wood chips each spring keeps the shallow roots cool and the soil slightly acid.

Berries

Leave them on the tree: they feed the birds.

Clear base

In the first years, keep the soil around the trunk free of grass.

Tip: Plant it where you can see the autumn colour close up, for example from a window. On heavier or more chalky soil, mix leaf mould into the soil at planting and mulch with leaf mould every year.

Japanese rowan: when to prune it?

Pruning months: December–February.

When: Pruning is hardly ever needed. If you must, do it while the tree is dormant, from December to February.

How:

• Remove dead, damaged or crossing branches.
• Keep the natural, narrow shape: do not shorten branches but remove them entirely.
• Remove shoots at the base of the trunk.
• Cut larger branches just outside the branch collar.

Pruning: when and how · Pruning calendar and basic rules

Propagation

Seed

Pick ripe berries in autumn, remove the flesh and sow the seed straight away in a pot outdoors. It germinates after the winter cold, sometimes only after two winters.

Grafting

Cultivars are grafted in nurseries onto a rowan rootstock; it is a job for professionals.

Japanese rowan: how does it get through the winter?

Hardy to −30 °C.

• Very hardy, to about −30 °C: no protection is needed in Belgium.
• The berries often hang on until the birds eat them; in cold winters they sometimes attract waxwings.
• In a pot: wrap the pot in hessian and stand it in a sheltered spot against a wall.

Diseases and pests

• Fire blight: Flowers and shoots suddenly blacken and shrivel as if scorched. Cut back well into healthy wood, disinfect tools and dispose of the wood.
• Drought: Brown leaf edges and early leaf fall in hot summers. Water at the base and mulch.
• Aphids: Curled leaves at the shoot tips in spring. Ladybirds usually deal with them; otherwise spray off with water.
• Yellow leaves: Yellow leaves with green veins on chalky soil. Mulch with leaf mould; preferably plant it on light, acid to neutral soil.

Through the year

• January: Dormant. Prune if needed.
• February: Prune if needed.
• March: Plant. Apply compost and mulch.
• April: Plant. Water young trees in dry spells.
• May: White flower heads. Watch for aphids.
• June: Water in dry spells.
• July: Berries colour up. Water in dry spells.
• August: Orange-red berries. Birds come to feed.
• September: Berries. Autumn colour begins.
• October: Brilliant autumn colour. Collect and sow seed. Plant.
• November: Plant.
• December: Plant in mild weather. Prune if needed.

Edible and useful

Berries (August–October)

Pick the clusters when the berries are bright orange-red, from late August to October. After the first night frost, or a night in the freezer, they are less bitter. Only use them cooked: for jelly (with apple), chutney, compote or with game.

Storing

The berries can be frozen on their clusters. Jelly and chutney keep for a year in sterilised jars.

Caution: Raw rowan berries contain parasorbic acid, which can upset the stomach; cooking largely destroys it. So do not eat them raw, and sieve out the seeds. Do not confuse rowan with other red berries, such as those of yew, guelder rose, honeysuckle or holly: rowan has pinnate leaves and berries in broad, flat clusters. Pick well away from busy roads and sprayed fields, and never eat anything you have not identified with certainty.

Eating and using is at your own risk: see the terms of use.

Recipes

• Rowan jelly (Jelly · ± 4 jars of 250 ml · 1 hr 30 + overnight dripping)
• Rowan and apple chutney (Other · ± 3 jars of 250 ml · 1 hr 15)
• Rowan syrup (Syrup · ± 600 ml · 1 hr + overnight freezing)
• Rowan and apple fruit leather (Dried · ± 200 g fruit leather (1 baking tray) · 1 hr + 6–8 hrs drying)

Good for wildlife

Bees

Nectar and pollen for honeybees and wild bees.

Birds

Berries, seeds or insects as food, or a place to nest.

Did you know?

• In Japan it is called nanakamado, which means roughly ‘seven times in the oven’: according to tradition, the wood still will not burn up even after seven times in the stove.
• Thrushes and blackbirds love the berries; the Dutch name lijsterbes literally means ‘thrush berry’.
• Rowans belong to the same family as apples and pears: botanically, their berries are really tiny apples.