Friday 17 May
Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna)
Hawthorn fact file
- Description
- Biology
- Range
- Habitat
- Status
- Threats
- Conservation
- Find out more
- Glossary
- References
- Print factsheet
Hawthorn description
| Kingdom | Plantae |
| Phylum | Anthophyta |
| Class | Magnoliopsida |
| Order | Rosales |
| Family | Rosaceae |
| Genus | Crataegus (1) |
Hawthorn is also widely known as the May-tree, and is the only British plant to be named after the month in which it flowers (3). It is most typically thought of as a hedgerow shrub, its thorns forming a good barrier to animals, however when isolated hawthorns are left uncut they develop into strong trees with dense crowns (4). The bark is greyish to brown in colour with regular fissures that reveal an orange layer below (2). The 3 to 5-lobed shiny leaves are roughly oval in shape. The flowers, which occur in groups of 9-18, are white, often with a pinkish blush (2), and provide a cheering display in the landscape that marks the cusp between spring and summer (3). The hawthorn tree is the origin of the Maypole, and the blossoms are used in Mayday decorations (3). The bright red berries, known as 'haws' are produced between May and September (2).
- Also known as
- May-tree.
- Size
- Height: up to 18 m (2)
- Calcareous
- Containing free calcium carbonate, chalky.
- National Biodiversity Network Species Dictionary (Feb 2003): http://www.nhm.ac.uk/nbn/
- Humphries. C.J., Press, J.R. & Sutton, D.A. (2000) Hamlyn guide to trees of Britain and Europe. Hamlyn, London.
- Mabey, R. (1996) Flora Britannica. Sinclair-Stevenson, London.
- Press, B. (1996) Collins Wild Guide: Trees. Harper Collins Publishers, London.
- Preston, C.D., Pearman, D. A., Dines, T.D. (2002) New Atlas of the Flora of Britain and Ireland. Oxford University Press, London.
- British Trees: hawthorn (Feb 2003): http://www.british-trees.com/guide/hawthorn.htm
- view the contents of, and Material on, the website;
- download and retain copies of the Material on their personal systems in digital form in low resolution for their own personal use;
- teachers, lecturers and students may incorporate the Material in their educational material (including, but not limited to, their lesson plans, presentations, worksheets and projects) in hard copy and digital format for use within a registered educational establishment, provided that the integrity of the Material is maintained and that copyright ownership and authorship is appropriately acknowledged by the End User.
More »
Top
Related species
Hawthorn biology
The flowering period of hawthorn is from March to June, and haws are produced from May to September (2). The haws are extremely important winter food items for a range of birds, which disperse the seeds by ingesting them and passing them in the faeces away from the parent plant (6).
Hawthorns can be fairly long-lived, often reaching 250 years of age (6); near Brecon Ash in Norfolk, there is a meeting place hawthorn, which is said to be around 700 years old (3). Perhaps the most well-known old hawthorn is the Holy Thorn at Glastonbury, which flowers twice a year, once at Christmas and again in May. It was first referred to in a sixteenth century poem, and according to legend grew from the staff of Joseph of Arimathea when he thrust it into the ground during a visit to Britain in the first century AD (3).
TopHawthorn range
This very common tree is widespread throughout Britain and the rest of Europe (2). In Britain it has been planted as a hedgerow plant for centuries, so its natural range is unclear (5).
More »
Species with a similar range
|
You can view distribution information for this species at the National Biodiversity Network Gateway. |
Hawthorn habitat
Hawthorn grows in hedgerows, scrub, thickets and woodlands in a range of habitats; it seems to favour calcareous soils (2), open habitats, heaths and rocky areas (3).
More »
Top
Species found in a similar habitat
Hawthorn status
Widespread and very common (2).
TopHawthorn threats
This tree is not threatened.
TopHawthorn conservation
As this species is common and widespread, conservation action is not necessary.
|
|
There may be further information about this species available via the National Biodiversity Network Gateway. |
Find out more
For more on the wealth of folklore surrounding the hawthorn see: Flora Britannica by Richard Mabey (1996) published by Sinclair-Stevenson, London.
For more on British trees see: The Tree Council:
http://www.treecouncil.org.uk
and British Trees.com:
http://www.british-trees.com
Authentication
This information is awaiting authentication by a species expert, and will be updated as soon as possible. If you are able to help please contact: arkive@wildscreen.org.ukTopGlossary
References
More »Related species
Sign up to our newsletter
Get the latest wild news direct to your inbox.
Get involved
ARKive relies on its media donors to donate photos and videos. Can you help? There are plenty of other ways you can get involved too!
Wednesday 15 May
Guest Blog: Join Our SOS! Campaign to Help Polar Bears with Polar Bears International
Monday 13 May
X
Close
Close
Image credit
Hawthorn tree in flower
© lauriecampbell.com
Laurie Campbell Photography
Hestia
Paxton
Berwick-upon-Tweed
TD15 1TE
United Kingdom
Tel: +44 (0) 1289 386 736
Fax: +44 (0) 1289 386 746
info@lauriecampbell.com
http://www.lauriecampbell.com
X
Close
Close
Link to this photo
Embed this ARKive thumbnail link by copying and pasting the code below.
Terms of Use - The displayed thumbnail may be used as a link from your website to ARKive's online content for private, scientific, conservation or educational purposes only. It may NOT be used within Apps.
Read more about
X
Close
Close
MyARKive
MyARKive offers the scrapbook feature to signed-up members, allowing you to organize your favourite ARKive images and videos and share them with friends.
X
Close
Close
Terms and Conditions of Use of Materials
Copyright in this website and materials contained on this website (Material) belongs to Wildscreen or its licensors.
Visitors to this website (End Users) are entitled to:
End Users shall not copy or otherwise extract, alter or manipulate Material other than as permitted in these Terms and Conditions of Use of Materials.
Additional use of flagged material
Green flagged material 
Certain Material on this website (Licence 4 Material) displays a green flag next to the Material and is available for not-for-profit conservation or educational use. This material may be used by End Users, who are individuals or organisations that are in our opinion not-for-profit, for their not-for-profit conservation or not-for-profit educational purposes. Low resolution, watermarked images may be copied from this website by such End Users for such purposes. If you require high resolution or non-watermarked versions of the Material, please contact Wildscreen with details of your proposed use.
Creative commons material
Certain Material on this website has been licensed to Wildscreen under a Creative Commons Licence. These images are clearly marked with the Creative Commons buttons and may be used by End Users only in the way allowed by the specific Creative Commons Licence under which they have been submitted. Please see http://creativecommons.org for details.
Any other use
Please contact the copyright owners directly (copyright and contact details are shown for each media item) to negotiate terms and conditions for any use of Material other than those expressly permitted above. Please note that many of the contributors to ARKive are commercial operators and may request a fee for such use.
Save as permitted above, no person or organisation is permitted to incorporate any copyright material from this website into any other work or publication in any format (this includes but is not limited to: websites, Apps, CDs, DVDs, intranets, extranets, signage, digital communications or on printed materials for external or other distribution). Use of the Material for promotional, administrative or for-profit purposes is not permitted.