SHEET
11
Rowan
(Sorbus aucuparia L.)
Caor thann
Rowan (Sorbus aucuparia L.)
Dist ribut ion & Prov e nance
Row an is a nativ e spec ies to Irela nd and t he re st of Eu rop e. I t
has an ext ensi ve natural ra nge f rom Ice lan d ac ros s to w est er n
R u s s i a a n d f r o m M o r o c c o i n n o r t h A f r i c a e a s t t o Tu r k e y a n d
northern Iran. It is also known in Ireland as mountain ash
although i t i s not re la te d t o ash (F ra xin us ex ce lsior ), the o nly
thing they have in common being a compound leaf
arrangeme nt. I n some parts of Irela nd rowa n i s kno wn a s
qui cken. It i s found a t h ighe r e le vat io n s ( up to 900 m et res)
than almost any other broadleaved species. Native Irish
provenances of rowan are used and recommended for
pl an ting in Ir el and.
Silv icul ture & Man age men t in Ire la nd
R o w a n i s a c o m m o n t r e e i n h i l l y, r o c k y a r e a s a n d w i l l
grow e quall y wel l o n acid or alka line sites. Rowan will
not to lerate wa te rlog ged co nd itions and gro ws best o n
l ight tex ture d brown ear ths and mo re fe rtile peat s. It is
tolerant of exposure and is often found in odd,
inaccessible places such as cliff faces, steep river
gorges and rocky outcrops.
The seed is naturally
di stribut ed by bi rds that f east on th e bright re d berrie s
produced i n the aut umn. Rowa n is a light d em an d in g
s pe cie s an d i s rar el y foun d sur viving un d er t he canop y
of other species. Instead, it is often planted along
plantation edges and roadsides to soften the visual
i mpact of comme rci al planta tions. It also regene ra tes
n aturall y al ong for est roadsides an d ridelin es.
Rowan is not considered a commercial species in
I re land and is rare ly planted in groups of greater th a n
a few trees. Ins tead , it is usually p lan t ed in a sc att ered
fashi on, p rovi ding dive rsity of colou r a n d text u re to the
landscape and so is unlikely to require pruning or
thi nni ng. Rowan does not gro w to a ver y large size ,
rarely more than 15 metres when mature.
It is a
coppicing species which means that when cut, new
shoo ts wil l d ev elo p from the expo sed stu m p. Rowan is
s ubjec t to browsi ng from de er and o th er he rb ivores.
Non Tim ber Ben efi ts
Rowan , as a spe cies toler ant o f expos ure, is o f ten seen
growi ng on fi el d bou ndaries and a roun d h o u se s wh ere it
c a n b e a u s e f u l p r o v i d e r o f s h e l t e r. I t i s a l s o a h i g h l y
at tract ive tre e, produc ing white b lo ssom in the S pring an d
red be rries in the Autum n. For this r ea so n it is of t en gro wn
a s an orna ment al tr ee i n pr ivate g ardens, along ro a dsid es
and i n public parks. Row an b erries ar e tra dit ion ally used in
the maki ng of je ll ie s and are f erm en ted, yield in g a drink n ot
unlike perry. Rowan plays an important role as a native
broadleaved species capable of growing on upland forestry
sites and as such contributes to the maintenance and
enh anceme nt of bi odi versi ty in these a reas. As a sm a ll sized,
light c rowne d tre e , it is acc eptable f or p ublic road side p la n ting .
Natural distribution of
rowan
The rowan in autumn
turns golden and has
bright red berries
Rowan
sprig and berries
SHEET
11
Caor thann
Rowan (Sorbus aucuparia L.)
Positio n in Iri sh Fore str y
Rowan i s not a commerci al specie s in Ire land bu t n ev erthe less p la ys a n
important role in upland forestry as one of the few broadleaved
species sui ted to many of the s ite s utilised f or com m ercial conifer
crops. Its abi li ty to r eg enerate f re ely m ea n s t hat it is ub iq uitous in
t h e Iris h l an dsca pe, part icularly in uplan d a reas. The species is
firmly roote d i n I ri sh folk lo re and was tra dit io nally pla nted a roun d
dwellings as it was considered to have protective qualities
agai nst dange r. An ol d te rm f or rowan was " fid na ndruad " o r
the "t re e o f the druids ". Its Irish name " Ca o rtha n n" f eat ures i n
many Irish plac e names su ch as Drum kee rin o r Ba llykeerin.
Row an fol iage may have be en used a s win te r f eed for ca ttl e
and during the famine was used as food for human
consumpti on.
Use s & Marke ts
Rowan timber is extremely hard and dense and has a
dark, purplish brown heartwood surrounded by a pale,
ye llow ish brow n sapw ood. It r a rely p rod uce s dim ens io n s
or quantities suitable for sawing and is therefore not
c o n s i d e r e d a s a c o m m e r c i a l s p e c i e s . H o w e v e r, i t i s
so ught af te r by wo od car v ers a nd turn ers. Tra ditiona lly
the timber was used in the manufacture of bows,
spi nnin g wh e els , a nd other househ old uten sils.
Rowan is commonly found
along mountain streams
Furt her Info rmatio n
Furt her i nformatio n on growing r o wan can be obta ine d
from your local Forest Service Inspector or any
Pro fessi onal F ore ste r.
Rowan was traditionally
used in domestic tools