Sorbus commixta, the Japanese rowan, is a species of flowering plant in the family Rosaceae, native to central and eastern China, Korea, Japan, and Sakhalin (in the Russian Far East).
The specific epithet commixta means "mixed or mingled together".
It is a small to medium-sized deciduous tree growing to tall, rarely , growing in mixed forests and on mountain slopes. It has a rounded crown and brownish to silvery-grey bark. The leaves are long, and pinnate. The leaves consist of 11âÂÂ17 leaflets, each long and 1âÂÂ2.5 cm broad, with an acuminate apex and serrated margins; they change to a deep purple or red in autumn. The flowers are 6âÂÂ10 mm in diameter, with five white petals and 20 yellowish-white stamens; they are produced in corymbs in diameter in late spring to early summer. The fruit is a bright orange to red pome 7âÂÂ8 mm in diameter, maturing in autumn.
Plants from Hokkaidà Â, the Kuril Islands and Sakhalin are sometimes distinguished as Sorbus commixta' var. 'sachalinensis, with larger leaflets up to 9 cm long.
Sorbus commixta is grown as an ornamental tree, hardy in zones 5-9. It grows best in moist, well-drained soil, in full sun. A number of cultivars have been selected, the most popular being 'Embley' (with branching) and 'Serotina' (flowering later in early summer). 'Embley' has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.