Hawthorn
Botanical name: Crataegus monogyna
Description
A very hardy deciduous tree (meaning that it sheds its leaves in winter) which typically grows to 6m tall but can reach 15m or more. Some specimens have been known to live for 250 years. Named after its fruits, known as 'Haws' but other common names are May, Quickthorn and Whitethorn.
Situation
Hawthorn grows rapidly on most soils throughout the British Isles, with a dense crown of thorny branches and has traditionally been close planed and regularly cut for stock proof hedging, windbreaks or sheltrebelts.
Season/Lifecycle
| Flowers | Leaves | Fruit |
| May-June Small and white, produced in profuse bunches with a strong distinctive scent |
March - April Small, lobed and dull green above and bluish green on the undersides. |
October - November Small, red ovoid berries (Haws) in clusters. Favourite food for birds, whose droppings spread the trees to new sites. |
Uses
Firewood, walking sticks, tool handles and woodturning. Good firewood.
Wildlife
Native species providing food and shelter for invertebrates and birds.
The future
Hawthorn is coming into leaf earlier and as result this, along with other changes, may alter the competitive advantage of some species, resulting in changes in composition of our woods over the next 50 to 100 years.
