PLANT

The hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna Jacq., 1775) is a shrub or a small tree very branched, twisted and thorny, belonging to the family of Rosaceae. Hawthorn is a deciduous e broadleaf, l'shrub can reach heights of between 50 centimetres and 6 metres. The drum is covered by a bark compact, grey in colour. I branches young people are equipped with plugs that develop at the base of the short twigs. These are the thorny twigs (pitchers) that become covered with buds and flowers in spring. This species is long-lived and can become several hundred years old, but with slow growth.

FLOWERS

I flowers are grouped into corymbs, which contain about 5-25 of them. I petals are pinkish-white in colour and 5 or 6 millimetres long.

FRUITS

I fruits are oval, red when ripe, about 1 cm in size and with a core containing the seed. Flowering typically occurs between April and May, while the fruits ripen between September and October. The hawthorn fruits are edible, but are usually not eaten fresh, because they are small and have a large stone, but processed to make jams, jellies or syrups. The fruits are decorative because they remain on the shrub for a long time, even throughout the winter.

USE

• Hawthorn is a melliferous plant and is foraged by the bees but only rarely can a honey monofloral, because it is usually found outnumbered by other plants in the area.
• The wood, dense and heavy, is a popular fuel.
• At one time, in several Italian regions, it was used as the constituent essence of the hedgerows interpenetrating, i.e. to demarcate the boundaries of plots of land. Due to the thorns and dense intertwining of the branches, the hawthorn hedge formed an almost impenetrable barrier. Nowadays, the need to avoid making the movement of mechanical agricultural machinery difficult has led to the almost complete disappearance of hawthorn hedges with this function.