Sorry, the information about P.crenulata being brought in by the British and naturalising is not correct. Pyracantha crenulata is a wild species *native to the Himalaya* from Kashmir to SW China and Myanamar @ 1000-2400m in shrubberies, open slopes & cultivated areas. Its fruits are typically orange-red though dark red forms occur.
It was not introduced by the British or became naturalised. There may have been isolated introductions of cultivars of Pyracantha during the British time or indeed since which might explain the specimen photographed at Narkanda, IF it is an escape from cultivation or is being cultivated? I do not know much about the ancestry of the various Pyracantha cultivars, whether selections or hybrids. Pyracantha 'Orange Glow' apparently arose as a chance seedling found in a garden in Holland around 1930. So it does not seem feasible that it could have got into wider cultivation and thus have been brought to India before Independence, IF this is thought to be this? Pyracantha crenulata is not often cultivated in the UK. Collet in 'Flora Simlensis' did record this plant but he knew it as Crataegus crenulata which he stated was found from the Sutlej to Bhutan but failed to indicate where it grew in or around Simla (as he normally did for most plants). As it is rather a prominent shrub, then not easily missed. He said the species was closely allied to one which was often trained against walls in Britain with bright red fruits. There is no native Pyracantha in the UK. The commonest species which naturalises there is P.coccinea a native of NE Spain to N.Iran. There seem to be about 7 species, 4 from China. Some think P.crenulata and P.coccinea may constitute the same species. In Bhutan P.crenulata grows at streamsides, the fruits red. I am not familiar with all the various cultivars and cannot distinguish readily between the species, so am uncertain what the plant photographed actually is. Stewart understood P.crenulata to be cultivated in Abbottabad and Rao recorded it from one place in Kashmir (hence, I suspect the distribution given). He felt that IF that was a wild specimen, it would represent a Westerly extension of its range. On Monday, October 24, 2016 at 4:46:39 PM UTC+1, Anil Thakur wrote: > Pyracantha 'Orange Glow' > or > Pyracantha 'Orange Charmer' > or > Pyracantha crenulata 'Orange Glow' > or > Pyracantha angustifolia (native to Southwest China) > > Height: 3-4 feet > October 23, 2016 > Place: Narkanda, Shimla, India > Altitude: 8700- 8800 feet > > -- > With best Regards, > > Dr. Anil Kumar Thakur > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "efloraofindia" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send an email to [email protected]. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/indiantreepix. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
