Monday, February 20, 2017

Intricate Hawthorn - Crataegus intricata

Intricate Hawthorn - Crataegus intricata, is easily recognized by it's shrubby form, dull yellow-orange fruit, 10 stamen flowers and hairless, glandular petiole. It is a small deciduous small tree or shrub that rarely reaches over 16 feet tall. It grows in a variety of forms from upright to arching or multi-trunked and shrub like. It is native to the Eastern United States and can be found in rocky woods, woodlands, on slopes and hills, and in forest clearings. It is found from Ontario, New Hampshire and Wisconsin in the North through Georgia, Arkansas and Missouri in the South. The Intricate Hawthorn is very common in the Appalachians. This variety is also called the Copenhagen Hawthorn, this alternate name is derived from an early comparison to a species native to Copenhagen, Denmark.


Image Citation: Princeton Field Guide, Trees of Eastern North America, Dave More

The bark is gray and scaly, the branching is slender, straight or slightly curved sometimes armed with thorns of gray-black. The leaves are alternate, simple, broadly elliptic or egg shaped. The upper leaf surface is a dull green or yellow-green, firm in texture and usually firm to the touch. The flowers are 15-20 mm in diameter, white petals, 10 stamens, ivory anthers, creamy white to yellow or pink in color. The flowers appear in Mid-Spring along with the developing leaves.  The fruit is a dull yellow to orange pome that ranges in size from 8-15 mm in diameter, that matures in Autumn.  The recommended hardiness zone is 4-9 and it is generally planted as an ornamental or in groupings.

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