Sorbus aucuparia and flexible wood has traditionally been used for woodworking. It is planted to fortify soil in mountain regions or as an ornamental tree and has several cultivars. The binomial name "Sorbus aucuparia" is composed of the Latin words "sorbus" for service tree and "aucuparia", which derives from the words "avis" for "bird" and "capere" for "catching" and describes the use of the fruit of "S. aucuparia" as bait for fowling. The plant is commonly known as rowan and mountain-ash, and has also been called Amur mountain-ash, European mountain-ash, quick beam, quickbeam, or rowan-berry. The names rowan and mountain ash may
Sorbus aucuparia damp, acidic, low on nutrients, sandy, and loose. It often grows in stony soil or clay soil, but also sandy soil or wet peat. The plant grows best on fresh, loose, and fertile soil, prefers average humidity, and does not tolerate saline soil or waterlogging. It can be found in light woodland of all kinds and as a pioneer species over fallen dead trees or in clearcuttings, and at the edge of forests or at the sides of roads. Seeds of "S. aucuparia" germinate easily, so the plant may appear on inaccessible rock, ruins, branch forks, or on hollow trees.