|
| Name |
Ornamental
- Crataegus Laevigata - Midland Hawthorn |
| Cultivation |
A
very easily grown plant, it prefers a well-drained moisture retentive
loamy soil but is not at all fussy. Once established, it succeeds in excessively
moist soils and also tolerates drought. It grows well on a chalk soil
and also in heavy clay soils. A position in full sun is best when plants
are being grown for their fruit, they also succeed in semi-shade though
fruit yields and quality will be lower in such a position. Most members
of this genus succeed in exposed positions, they also tolerate atmospheric
pollution.. A true woodland species, it grows well in quite dense shade.
|
| Family |
Laevigata
|
| Genus |
Crataegus |
| Synonyms |
Common
Name: Midland hawthorn |
| Known
Hazards |
|
| Range |
It
is an ideal plant for all conditions, as it is tough enough to stand exposed
sites, city pollution and even costal gardens, while also being very ornamental
in the garden. |
| Height |
Height
to about 18 feet. |
| Habitat |
Hedge,
Woodland, Secondary, Sunny Edge, Dappled Shade, Deep Shade. A very hardy
plant, tolerating temperatures down to at least -18°c.
|
| Characteristics |
This
lovely tree, formerly called 'Coccinea Plena' or 'Kermesiana Plena', is
a sport of 'Rosea Flore Pleno', the double pink hawthorn, and one of the
finest for spring and autumn display. It is a garden form of the Midland
hawthorn, a familiar woodland shrub or tree occasionally found in hedgerows,
and flowering a week or so earlier than other hawthorns. The trees are laden
with double red blooms in May, while the early autumn display of deep red
berries is almost equally lavish. The Royal Horticultural Society has given
it its prestigious Award of Garden Merit (AGM). Also known as `Pauls Scarlet`
or English Hawthorn, this is a popular thorny tree with mid-green, three-
to five-lobed leaves and a profusion of double, dark pink flowers in late
spring. It is noted for attracting wildlife! |
| Edible
Uses |
Coffee;
Fruit; Leaves; Tea.
Fruit - raw or cooked. A dry and mealy texture, they are not very appetizing.
The fruit can be used for jams and preserves. The fruit pulp can be dried,
ground into a meal and mixed with flour in making bread etc. The fruit is
about 1cm in diameter. There are up to five fairly large seeds in the centre
of the fruit, these often stick together and so the effect is of eating
a cherry-like fruit with a single seed.
Young leaves and young shoots - raw. A tasty nibble, they are nice in a
salad.
Young leaves are a tea substitute.
The roasted seed is a coffee substitute. |
| Medicinal
Uses |
None
Known |
| Other
Uses |
Charcoal;
Fuel; Hedge; Rootstock; Wood.
A good hedge plant, it is very tolerant of neglect and is able to regenerate
if cut back severely, it makes a good thorny stock-proof barrier and resists
very strong winds. It can be used in layered hedges.
The plant is often used as a rootstock for several species of garden fruit
such as the medlar (Mespilus germanica) and the pear (Pyrus communis sativa).
Wood - very hard and tough but difficult to work. It has a fine grain and
takes a beautiful polish but is seldom large enough to be of great value.
It is used for tool handles and making small wooden articles etc. The wood
is valued in turning and makes an excellent fuel, giving out a lot of heat,
more so even than oak wood. Charcoal made from the wood is said to be able
to melt pig iron without the aid of a blast. |
| Propagation |
Seed
- this is best sown as soon as it is ripe in the autumn in a cold frame,
some of the seed will germinate in the spring, though most will probably
take another year. Stored seed can be very slow and erratic to germinate,
it should be warm stratified for 3 months at 15°c and then cold stratified
for another 3 months at 4°c. It may still take another 18 months to
germinate. Scarifying the seed before stratifying it might reduce this time.
Fermenting the seed for a few days in its own pulp may also speed up the
germination process. Another possibility is to harvest the seed 'green'
(as soon as the embryo has fully developed but before the seedcoat hardens)
and sow it immediately in a cold frame. If timed well, it can germinate
in the spring. If you are only growing small quantities of plants, it is
best to pot up the seedlings as soon as they are large enough to handle
and grow them on in individual pots for their first year, planting them
out in late spring into nursery beds or their final positions. When growing
larger quantities, it might be best to sow them directly outdoors in a seedbed,
but with protection from mice and other seed-eating creatures. Grow them
on in the seedbed until large enough to plant out, but undercut the roots
if they are to be left undisturbed for more than two years. Seedling trees
take from 5 - 8 years before they start bearing fruit, though grafted trees
will often flower heavily in their third year. |
| Cultivars |
Cultivar:
'Paul's Scarlet'.
Hybridizes freely
with other members of this genus. Closely allied to C. monogyna, it often
hybridizes with that species in the wild when growing in its proximity.
There are many named forms selected for their ornamental value. |
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