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Black Chokeberry

Aronia melanocarpa

Also listed as Photinia melanocarpa

Found in mountain balds; forests and woodlands; cliffs, ledges and rocky summits; seeps and springs. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

90
Keystone

Native to West Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 100%

Height
About 6 feet
Spread
3–6 feet
Light
Partial sun, Full sun
Soil moisture
Average to wet

Space about 4.5 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 5 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial
Leaves
Deciduous
Bloom
May to June
Fruiting season
August to September

Recorded in 8 West Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 4

Mountain balds

Treeless grassy or shrubby summits and ridges in the high mountains.

Forests and woodlands

Forest or woodland where the source does not say how moist or dry.

Cliffs, ledges and rocky summits

Cliffs, ledges, rock outcrops, talus and rocky summits where the source does not name the rock. A named rock files the place under its own glade or outcrop type instead.

Seeps and springs

Places where groundwater keeps the soil or rock wet, such as seepage slopes and spring runs.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in West Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 106 animals.

All wildlife of West Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

67CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including WV

Genus host records with ranges including WV · Sorbus

  • Acronicta americanaAmerican Dagger
  • Acronicta clarescensClear Dagger
  • Acronicta fragilisFragile Dagger
  • Acronicta funeralisFunerary Dagger, Paddle Caterpillar
  • Acronicta griseaGray Dagger
  • Acronicta impletaYellow-Haired Dagger
  • Acronicta innotataUnmarked Dagger
  • Acronicta interruptaInterrupted Dagger
  • Acronicta radcliffeiRadcliffe's Dagger
  • Acronicta superansSplendid Dagger, Chieftain Dagger
Show all 67
  • Alsophila pometariaFall Cankerworm Moth
  • Amphipyra pyramidoidesMiranda Underwing, Copper Underwing, Copper Amphipyra
  • Antheraea polyphemusPolyphemus Moth
  • Biston betulariaSalt-and-Pepper Geometer, Cleft-Headed Looper
  • Catocala gryneaWoody Underwing
  • Cenopis pettitanaMaple-Basswood Leafroller Moth
  • Choristoneura conflictanaLarge Aspen Tortrix
  • Coelodasys unicornisUnicorn Caterpillar Moth
  • Crocigrapha normaniNorman's Quaker
  • Datana ministraYellow-Necked Caterpillar Moth
  • Dysstroma citrataDark Marbled Carpet
  • Dysstroma truncataMarbled Carpet
  • Ennomos subsignariaElm Spanworm Moth
  • Erannis tiliariaLinden Looper Moth, Western Winter Moth, Lime Looper
  • Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
  • Eupsilia tristigmataThree-Spotted Sallow, Brown Fruitworm
  • Euzophera semifuneralisAmerican Plum Borer
  • Halysidota tessellarisBanded Tussock Moth, Pale Tiger Moth
  • Hedya chionosemaTwin-Spotted Budworm, White-Spotted Hedya
  • Hedya nr.Large Bud Moth, Green Bud Moth, Off-White Hedya
  • Hesperumia sulphurariaSulphur Moth
  • Hyalophora cecropiaCecropia Silkmoth, Cecropia Moth
  • Hyphantria cuneaFall Webworm
  • Iridopsis larvariaBent-Line Gray
  • Korscheltellus gracilisConifer Swift Moth, Graceful Ghost Moth
  • Limenitis arthemisBanded Purple, Red-Spotted Admiral
  • Lithophane innominataNameless Pinion
  • Lomographa semiclarataBluish Spring Moth, Wildcherry Looper
  • Lomographa vestaliataWhite Spring Moth
  • Lophocampa maculataSpotted Tussock Moth, Yellow-Spotted Tiger Moth
  • Lyonetia prunifoliellaStriped Bent-wing
  • Machimia tentoriferellaGold-Striped Leaftier Moth
  • Malacosoma americanaEastern Tent Caterpillar
  • Malacosoma disstriaForest Tent Caterpillar
  • Metaxaglaea semitariaFootpath Sallow
  • Metaxaglaea viaticaRoadside Sallow
  • Nematocampa resistariaFilament Bearer, Horned Spanworm Moth
  • Nemoria mimosariaWhite-Fringed Emerald
  • Nymphalis antiopaMourning Cloak
  • Orgyia leucostigmaWhite-Marked Tussock Moth
  • Orthosia hibisciSpeckled Green Fruitworm Moth, Speckled Green Quaker
  • Pandemis limitataThree-Lined Leafroller Moth
  • Papilio canadensisCanadian Tiger Swallowtail
  • Papilio glaucusEastern Tiger Swallowtail
  • Paraclemensia acerifoliellaMaple Leafcutter, Maple Case-Bearer
  • Phigalia titeaThe Half-Wing Geometer, Spiney Looper, Eastern Oak Looper
  • Phyllonorycter crataegellaApple Leaf Miner, Apple Blotch Leafminer, Apple Leafblotch Miner
  • Podosesia syringaeLilac Borer Moth, Ash Borer
  • Pseudothyatira cymatophoroidesTufted Thyatirid
  • Rhopobota naevanaBlackheaded Fireworm, Holly Bud Moth, Holly Tortrix
  • Satyrium liparopsStriped Hairstreak
  • Synanthedon pictipesLesser Peachtree Borer Moth
  • Synanthedon pyriApple Bark Borer, Pear Borer
  • Synanthedon scitulaDogwood Borer, Pecan Borer
  • Venusia cambricaThe Welsh Wave
  • Venusia comptariaBrown-Shaded Carpet
  • Xanthotype sospetaCrocus Geometer
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
14BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Aronia

Individual names are not available yet.

Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
1Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Aronia

  • Andrena melanochroa
Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
6BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Sorbus

  • Catharus fuscescensVeery
  • Catharus ustulatusSwainson's Thrush
  • Coccothraustes vespertinusEvening Grosbeak
  • Falcipennis canadensisSpruce Grouse
  • Pinicola enucleatorPine Grosbeak
  • Turdus migratoriusAmerican Robin
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Rosaceae
Hardiness
Zones 3–8
Soil pH
Acidic
Flower color
White
Growth habit
Forms thickets
Foliage color
Red
Fruit begins
August
Fruit ends
September

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Photinia melanocarpa; Sorbus melanocarpa; mountain ash; mountain-ash

Conservation status

West Virginia rankS4
Global rankG5
WV statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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How to check your spot

Growing cautions

For planning only; these do not change the score or Fit.

Sources