Hawthorn (Cretaegus monogyna)

Description: Of all the shrubs used in hedging hawthorn (also called ‘quickthorn’) is the commonest. Fast growing, sturdy and with sharp thorns, it is almost impenetrable when cut back and laid. It has delicate white flowers in spring, and clusters of small, hard, red berries in autumn.
	Myths and Legends	Facts, Figures and Uses
	Hawthorns were associated by early Christians with Joseph of Arimathea, owner of the tomb in which Jesus was placed after the Crucifixion. Joseph was said to have planted his hawthorn staff in the ground during a visit to Glastonbury in Somerset and it sprouted to produce a “Holy Thorn” that blooms at Christmas. Another legend links the hawthorn with pagan rites to greet the advent of summer. This legend probably arose because hawthorn blossoms mid-May. In country areas, destruction of hawthorn is believed to invite peril, and to bring the blossom indoors is to court disaster. The saying “Ne're shed a clout 'til may is out” refers to the hawthorn blossom, meaning you should keep your warm winter clothes on until the hawthorn blossom indicates that warmer weather is here… Henry VIII claimed the hawthorn as the Tudor badge. Legend states that at the battle of Bosworth Field, the crown was stolen from Richard III and hidden in a hawthorn bush.	This deciduous shrub or small tree is commonly found in scrub, woods and hedges throughout the British Isles. During the land enclosures between the 16th and 17th centuries, hawthorns were planted in their thousands in the hedges with which land owners surrounded their estates. The white-pink flowers burst open in bunches of sixteen or more individuals. Opening around mid-May and known as “may” they give off a sickly sweet scent. Sometimes children eat the new leaves, which are called ‘bread and cheese’ The fruit develops in autumn, thickly covering the bushes and providing a valuable food source for hedge residents and visitors. A cure for sciatica was made of haw berries and fennel mixed with elderberry syrup.