Hawthorn berries

Image: © Jonathan Kington Taken: 2 Sep 2011

Spring of 2011 produced a very bright show of Hawthorn flowers and now Autumn is showing an extremely heavy crop of berries, an excellent food source for the birds in the coming Winter. The Common Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna), often called May, is a native shrub to the UK and is often used as a hedging plant. They mostly grow from between 5 and 15 metres tall and have white, sometimes pink, flowers followed by red berry-like fruits (commonly known as Haws) produced on thorny branches. Ecologically, Hawthorns are very important in that they provide food and shelter for small birds and mammals, especially when grown as hedges. The flowers provide a nectar source for many invertebrates and a large number of Butterfly larvae feed on the shrub. During the winter the berries provide food for a number of species of birds, particularly thrushes and waxwings who eat the berries and disperse the Hawthorn seeds in their droppings. Hawthorn flowers are reputed to have magical properties, and are believed to bring about a death in the family if they are taken into the home. This may have something to do with the trimethlamine present in the flowers - this substance is one of the first products formed when body tissue starts to decay. Hawthorn is also said to have been the source for Christ's crown of thorns. During the First World War, the young leaves were used as a substitute for tea and tobacco, with the seeds being ground as a substitute for coffee

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