Hawthorn

Every so often I look a the tree which overhangs our fence from our neighbour’s garden and wonder what it is. It has pretty flowers and spiny branches, followed by little red berries in the autumn. Every so often I have to trim a branch off, as it threatens to poke my eye out when I’m seeing to the chickens – it overhangs their run.

Today it has occurred to me (I don’t know why) that it’s probably hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna). Can anyone identify it definitively, or let me know how to?


Hawthorn flowers

If it is hawthorn, then it’s current avalanche of blossom will be good for bees, and the garden birds love it as the dense canopy gives them a safe place from which to survey the garden.


Hawthorn flowers and leaves

According to Mabey’s Food for Free, young hawthorn leaves are really tasty, known as ‘bread and cheese’ in times gone past and a nice addition to cheese sandwiches. I know that in autumn many people turn the haws into hawthorn fruit leather (the fruit is supposedly nicer cooked), although that’s only one possibility and the Herb Society has a lovely recipe for Haw Sin Sauce :)

Mind you, if it is a hawthorn, and I get around to harvesting some berries this year, then I am very tempted to try turning them into hawthorn schapps instead!