Crataegus monogyna

"May blossom" redirects here. For the films, seeMay Blossom (film)andMayblossom (film).

Crataegus monogyna
Conservation status
Least Concern(IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Rosales
Family:	Rosaceae
Genus:	Crataegus
Section:	Crataegussect.Crataegus
Series:	Crataegusser.Crataegus
Species:	C. monogyna
Binomial name
Crataegus monogyna Jacq.
Distribution map
Synonyms
Many, including: Crataegus elegans(Poir.) Mutel Crataegus polyacanthaJan

Crataegus monogyna,known ascommon hawthorn,one-seed hawthorn,orsingle-seeded hawthorn,is a species offlowering plantin the rose familyRosaceae.It is native to Europe, northwestern Africa, and Western Asia, but has been introduced in many other parts of the world.

Names

This species is one of several that have been referred to asCrataegus oxyacantha,a name that has been rejected by the botanical community as too ambiguous. In 1793,Medikuspublished the nameC. apiifoliafor a European hawthorn now included inC. monogyna,but that name isillegitimateunder the rules ofbotanical nomenclature.

Other common names includemay,mayblossom,maythorn,(as the plant generally flowers in May)quickthorn,whitethorn,motherdie,andhaw.

Description

The common hawthorn is ashrubor smalltreeup to about 10 metres (33 feet) tall,with a dense crown. Thebarkis dull brown with vertical orange cracks. The younger stems bear sharp thorns, about12.5 millimetres (1⁄2inch) long. Theleavesare20 to 40 mm (3⁄4to1+1⁄2in) long,obovate,and deeply lobed, sometimes almost to the midrib, with the lobes spreading at a wide angle. The upper surface is dark green above and paler underneath.

Thehermaphroditeflowersare produced in late spring (May to early June in its native area) incorymbsof 5–25 together; numerous red stamens and a single style; they are moderately fragrant. The flowers are white, frequently pinkpollinated bymidges,bees, and other insects, and later in the year bear numerous haws. The haw is a small, oval, dark redfruitabout 10 mm long,berry-like, but structurally apomecontaining a singleseed.Haws are important forwildlifein winter, particularlythrushesandwaxwings;these birds eat the haws and disperse theseedsin their droppings.

The common hawthorn is distinguished from the related but less widespreadMidland hawthorn(C. laevigata) by its more upright growth, the leaves being deeply lobed, with spreading lobes, and the flowers having just one style, not two or three. They are interfertile, however, so hybrids occur frequently; they are only entirely distinct in their more typical forms.

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  Flowers
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  Flowers
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  Close-up
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  Bole of ancient specimen atSaint-Mars-sur-la-Futaie,France
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  General view of the Saint-Mars tree
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  Replacement of theGlastonbury or Holy Thorncut down by vandals in 2010
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  TheHethelOld Thorn
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  Joncret,Belgium
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  Fruit containing a seed
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  Pink may on farmland inNorth Yorkshire,England

Distribution

Ireland and BritainThe mountains are very young in theEastern Anatolianregion ofTurkey.Therefore, the trees in the region multiply with seeds.

Grazing

Due to excessive animal grazing in the area, new shoots of vulnerableCrataegus monogynatrees in the open field are eaten by animals. This does not allow them to grow and causes them to take a horizontally irregular shape on the ground.

A study in Wales indicted that current levels of overgrazing by sheep might extirpate the species in 60-70 years.

Uses

Food

Fruits

The fruit of hawthorn, called haws, are edible rawbut commonly made into jellies, jams, syrups, or wine, or to add flavour to brandy. Botanically, they arepomes,but they look similar to berries. A haw is small and oblong, similar in size and shape to a small olive or grape, and red when ripe. The haws develop in groups of two or three along smaller branches. They are pulpy and delicate in taste. In this species (C. monogyna), they have only one seed, but other species of hawthorn may have up to five seeds.

Petals

The petals are also edible,as are the leaves, which if picked in spring when still young are tender enough to be used in salads.Hawthorn petals are used in the medieval English recipe for spinee, analmond milk-basedpottagerecorded in 'The Forme of Cury' by the Chief Master-Cook of KingRichard II,c. 1390.

Medicine

'Crimson Cloud' inElko,Nevada

C. monogynais one of the most common species used as the "hawthorn" of traditionalherbalism.The plant parts used are usually sprigs with both leaves and flowers, or alternatively the fruit ( "berries" ).Hawthorn has been investigated byevidence-based medicinefor treating cardiac insufficiency.

C. monogynais a source ofantioxidantphytochemicals,especially extracts of hawthorn leaves with flowers.

Gardening and agriculture

Common hawthorn is extensively planted as ahedgeplant, especially foragriculturaluse. Its spines and close branching habit render it effectively livestock- and human-proof, with some basic maintenance. The traditional practice ofhedge layingis most commonly practised with this species. It is a goodfire wood,which burns with a good heat and little smoke.

Numeroushybridsexist, some of which are used as garden shrubs. The most widely used hybrid isC. × media(C. monogyna×C. laevigata), of which severalcultivarsare known, including the very popular 'Paul's Scarlet' with dark pink double flowers. Other garden shrubs that have sometimes been suggested as possible hybrids involving the common hawthorn,include thevarious-leaved hawthornof theCaucasus,which is only very occasionally found in parks and gardens.

Culture

In pre-modern Europe, hawthorn was used as a symbol of hope, and also as a charm againstwitchcraftandvampires.Hawthorn was believed by some to have the ability to inhibit intrudingsupernaturalforces, and was also thought to be sacred in nature due to an association between the hawthorn bush and thecrown of thornsthat, according to theNew Testament,was placed onJesus.

As protection against witchcraft, hawthorn was sometimes placed in the cradles of infants, or around houses and doorways.The Greeks reportedly placed pieces of hawthorn incasement windowsto prevent witches from entering houses,whileBohemiansplaced hawthorn on the thresholds ofcow housesfor the same purpose.Hawthorn was sometimes placed on the coffin of a deceased person, on top of the person's corpse, or in the corpse's sock.In Bosnia, women would sometimes place a piece of hawthorn behind the headcloth of a recently deceased person, and then throw away the remaining twig on their way home.If the deceased person was a vampire, it would focus its attention on the hawthorn instead of following the woman home.Among theSouth Slavs,stakes made of hawthorn orblackthornwood were considered effective in impaling vampires.

Notable trees

An ancient specimen, and reputedly the oldest tree of any species in France, is to be found alongside the church atSaint Mars sur la Futaie,Mayenne.As of 2009, the tree had a height of 9 m (30 ft) and a girth of2.65 m (8+1⁄2ft). The inscription on the plaque beneath reads: "This hawthorn is probably the oldest tree in France. Its origin goes back toSt Julien(third century) "; this has not yet been verified. A famous specimen in England was theGlastonbury or Holy Thornwhich, according to legend, sprouted from the staff ofJoseph of Arimatheaafter he thrust it into the ground while visiting Glastonbury in the first century AD. The tree was noteworthy because it flowered twice in a year, once in the late spring which is normal, but also once after the harshness of midwinter had passed. The original tree at Glastonbury Abbey, felled in the 1640s during theEnglish Civil War,has been propagated as the cultivar 'Biflora'.A replacement was planted by the local council in 1951, but was cut down by vandals in 2010.

The oldest known living specimen inEast Anglia,and possibly in the United Kingdom, is known as theHethel Old Thorn,and is located in the churchyard in the small village ofHethel,south of Norwich, in Norfolk. It is reputed to be more than 700 years old, having been planted in the thirteenth century.

See also

• The hawthorn button-top gall on hawthorn is caused by the dipteran gall-midgeDasineura crataegi.
• Folkloreabout hawthorns, primarily the European speciesC. laevigataand/orC. monogynaand hybrids between the two
• Haweater

References

Further reading

• Melton, J. Gordon (1994).The Vampire Book: The Encyclopedia of the Undead.Visible Ink Press.ISBN978-1578590766.

External links

• Philips, R. (1978).Trees of North America and Europe(registration required).New York: Random House.ISBN0-394-50259-0.
• Kheloufi, A., Mansouri, L. M., & Vanbellinghen, C. (2019)."Seed germination ofCrataegus monogyna—a species with a stony endocarp ".Reforesta(7), 73–80.
• Bahorun, Theeshan, et al. (2003)."Phenolic constituents and antioxidant capacities ofCrataegus monogyna(Hawthorn) callus extracts ".Food/Nahrung47.3 (2003): 191–198.
• Crataegus monogynain Topwalks
• Hawthorn Gallery(photographs of a number of such trees, including Hethel Old Thorn)
• "Hawthorn".Encyclopedia Americana.1920.
• Crataegus monogynaat Flora Iberica