Species Focus - Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna)

‘The Darling Buds of May’ is a series of novels written by H.E.Bates in 1958, more famously known by the television series of the same name. The title is taken from Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18: ‘Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?......Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May’.

Crataegus monogyna comes into flower in May, although earlier these days, and one of its many English names is May or May Blossom. It is more usually known now as Hawthorn and Draenen Wen (white thorn) in Welsh, and for the fruit Criafol y moch (swine berries). A great deal of folklore is attached to it – see Richard Mabey’s Flora Britannica.

It is a very common shrub or small tree, spread across the whole of the British Isles as it has been, and still is, very widely planted as a hedging plant for about 500 years. It also grows in open woodland. It has deep roots and on high ground can withstand high wind and severe weather, giving shelter to sheep.

Its beautiful pink buds open into white flowers with striking dark purple anthers, covering the tree with a froth of lacy flowers which emit a strong sweetly sour perfume in the warmth of the sun. It is pollinated by a wide range of insects and provides food for many caterpillars.

The leaves are small with an irregular shape and are a glossy dark green; the bark is dark brown and the thorns are up to 2.5cm long, which not only make it a good hedging plant but a good sheep deterrent. In autumn it produces large amounts of small, dark red berries (haws), which are an important food source for resident and migrant birds, especially thrushes and Redwings.

Hawthorn is well recorded on the Cofnod database, but it is always worth keeping records up to date. The map below displays records of Hawthorn that Cofnod has gathered since 2021, showing plenty of gaps where new records would be welcome. Please submit them, ideally with photos, to the Cofnod ORS or the LERC Wales App.