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Hawthorn | | Name : | Hawthorn | | Botanical : | Crataegus oxyacantha | | Latin : | Crataegus laevigata (Poir.) DC. | | Synonyms : | English hawthorn
Haw (Black Haw is Viburnum pruifolium L.)
May
May blossom
May bush
May tree
Quick-set
Shan-cha (Chinese name)
Thorn-apple tree
Whitethorn
| | Family : | Rosaceae | | Parts Used : | Berries, leaves and flowers | | Habitat : | England and continental Europe; in England it is widely grown as a hedge plant.Found by the roadside or in the meadows, along streams, in bottomlands and open woods from Nova Scotia to North Dakota and south to Alabama and Texas.Native to Asia, Africa and Europe.Naturalized to the United States. | | Picture : |  | | Description : | The Hawthorn is the badge of the Ogilvies and gets one of its commonest popular names from blooming in May. Many country villagers believe that Hawthorn flowers still bear the smell of the Great Plague of London. The tree was formerly regarded as sacred, probably from a tradition that it furnished the Crown of Thorns. The device of a Hawthorn bush was chosen by Henry VII because a small crown from the helmet of Richard III was discovered hanging on it after the battle of Bosworth, hence the saying, 'Cleve to thy Crown though it hangs on a bush.' The Hawthorn is called Crataegus Oxyacantha from the Greek kratos, meaning hardness (of the wood), oxcus (sharp), and akantha (a thorn). The German name of Hagedorn, meaning Hedgethorn, shows that from a very early period the Germans divided their land into plots by hedges; the word haw is also an old word for hedge. The name Whitethorn arises from the whiteness of its bark and Quickset from its growing as a quick or living hedge, in contrast to a paling of dead wood.
This familiar tree will attain a height of 30 feet and lives to a great age. It possesses a single seed-vessel to each blossom producing a separate fruit, which when ripe is a brilliant red and this is in miniature a stony apple. In some districts these mealy red fruits are called Pixie Pears, Cuckoo's Beads and Chucky Cheese. The flowers are mostly fertilized by carrion insects, the suggestion of decomposition in the perfume attracts those insects that lay their eggs and hatch out their larvae in decaying animal matter. | | Constituents : | In common with other members of the Prunus and Pyrus groups of theorder Rosaceae, the Hawthorn contains Amyddalin. The bark contains the alkaloid Crataegin, isolated in greyish-white crystals, bitter in taste, soluble in water, with difficulty in alcohol and not at all in ether. | | Uses : | Cardiac, diuretic, astringent, tonic. Mainly used as a cardiac tonic in organic and functional heart troubles. Both flowers and berries are astringent and useful in decoction to cure sore throats. A useful diuretic in dropsy and kidney troubles. | | Dosage : | Infusion: steep 1 tsp. flowers in 1/2 cup water.Take 1 to 1 1/2 cups per day, a mouthful at a time.Sweeten with honey if desired.
Decoction: use 1 tsp. crushed fruit with 1/2 cup cold water.Let stand for 7-8 hours, then bring quickly to a boil and strain.Take 1 to 1 1/2 cups per day, a mouthful at a time, sweetened with honey if desired.
Also, use 1/2 oz. hawthorn berries simmered in 1 pint of water for 20 minutes, along with 1 tsp. of cinnamon and taken 3 times a day after meals, sweetened with honey as a heart tonic.
Tincture: use concentrated preparations under medical direction. | | Safety : | Though non-toxic, hawthorn can produce dizziness if taken in large doses.
Hawthorn contains heart-affecting compounds that may affect blood pressure and heart rate.Most hawthorn preparations are safe, but it is available in a highly concentrated form that should be used only under medical supervision.Hawthorn berries are considered best for blood pressure regulation and heart/vascular conditions.
Avoid if colitis or ulcers are present.
Used for centuries, no side effects have ever been noted. | | Myths : | In ancient Greece and Rome, the hawthorn had happy associations, being linked with sweet hope, marriage, and babies.Dedicated to Hymen, the god of marriage, the hawthorn was used as a symbol of hope at weddings in Greece; bridal attendants wore its blossoms while the bride carried an entire bough.Also, in both Greece and Rome, torches carried in wedding processions were made of hawthorn.The Romans put hawthorn leaves in the cradles of newborn babies to ward off evil spirits.
In medieval Europe, hawthorn had an entirely different image.Generally regarded as an unlucky plant, it was thought that bringing its branches inside would portend the death of one of the household's members.Hawthorn was also one of the witch's favorite plants and was especially to be avoided on Walpugis Night, when witches turned themselves into hawthorns.With a little superstitious imagination, the hawthorn's writhing, thorny branches at night probably do look enough like a witch to have instilled fear in medieval folk.
The Chinese sell a jam of hawthorn in shops under the name Shan-cha-kao or Shan-cha-ping.
Hawthorn is the plant for which the ship Mayflower was named. | | Nutrient : | Sugar, minerals and vitamins B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B9, B12, and C. | | Sold : | Capsules, teaTake 1 capsule, up to 3 times a day. |
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