The illustrated growing guide
Hawthorn
Crataegus viridis 'Winter King'
Family Rosaceae
Est. zones 4-7
A tough, adaptable small native tree that does everything: clouds of spring flowers for bees, persistent red berries ('haws') that feed birds all winter and make a folk heart-tonic jelly and tea, plus handsome silvery bark. 'Winter King' is the disease-resistant standout. Most hawthorns have serious thorns (a plus for barrier hedges, a minus near paths). Underused and deserving.
Full Sun
Low water
Slow-Moderate growth
Native to North America
Attracts bees
From the print shop
The closest print we make
We don’t print Crataegus viridis 'Winter King'. The closest we have is Crataegus monogyna (“Hawthorn”) in the Flowering Trees collection — the same genus, Crataegus, not the same species.
16 designsfrom $21.99white or black groundmatte poster, unframed
I
Overview
Will hawthorn suit your garden, and what goes wrong.
Will it fruit where you are?
Enter your ZIP — we look up your USDA hardiness zone (2023 map) and check it against what hawthorn actually needs.
Hardy inZones 4-7Hawthorn at a glance
Common hawthorn problems
- Almost none on resistant types
- Cedar-Hawthorn Rust
- Fireblight (choose resistant 'Winter King')
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Growing
Light, water, soil, propagation and the season’s jobs.
How to grow hawthorn: light, water & soil
How to plant & propagate hawthorn
When to spray hawthorn
Growing season. Resistant cultivars skip the spray.
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The year
What hawthorn asks for, month by month.
The hawthorn year, month by month
BloomPruneHarvestWhat each band means
- Bloom — flowers open — pollinators working, frost on blossoms is the danger.
- Prune — shape it now — cuts heal cleanly and structure is visible.
- Harvest — picking time — check ripeness every few days.
The hawthorn year as text
- Jan harvest
- Feb pruning, harvest
- Mar bloom, pruning
- Apr bloom
- May bloom
- Jun quiet month
- Jul quiet month
- Aug quiet month
- Sep harvest
- Oct harvest
- Nov harvest
- Dec harvest
These are the species' typical months — expect them a few weeks earlier in warm zones and later in cold ones. Watch the plant, not just the calendar.
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Ecology & uses
What it does for the garden, and what it is grown for.
Hawthorn in the garden system
- Understory layer tree
- Nectary/insectary
- Keystone: Keystone — hosts 160+ caterpillar species
What hawthorn is grown for
! Some parts toxic — see notesHaws edible (jelly/tea); SEEDS toxic (as all Prunus/Rosaceae kin) — don't crush
Harvesting & storing hawthorn
Fall/Winter: persistent red 'haws' (berries) feed birds; edible, used for jelly and heart-tonic tea.
Edibility, identification, and traditional-use notes here are general reference — not medical or veterinary advice, and not a claim that any plant treats or prevents anything. Medicinal ratings record how strongly a plant features in herbal tradition, nothing more. Never eat or dose a plant you have not positively identified. More on how to use this library.
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Cultivars
Named varieties of hawthorn, ruled as a catalogue.
Best hawthorn varieties & cultivars
'Winter King' (green hawthorn, disease-resistant, silvery bark, big red haws — the best); cockspur, Washington hawthorn
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Sources & plant ID
Where the care distinctions come from, and how the plant is filed.
Research basis
Sources behind this profile
No extension citations are attached to hawthornyet. The care figures below come from the library's own catalogue rather than a traced primary source.
Plant ID
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Where to buy
Third-party nurseries — not Story Thyme Farms.
Third-party nurseries, not Story Thyme Farms. Prices are theirs.
Story Thyme Farms may earn a small commission from these links, at no cost to you — it never changes what we recommend.
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Questions
Hawthorn questions, answered straight.
Is hawthorn safe for kids and pets?
With care. Haws edible (jelly/tea); SEEDS toxic (as all Prunus/Rosaceae kin) — don't crush Site it accordingly if children or pets roam the garden. This is general reference, not medical or veterinary advice — call a vet or poison control if something has actually been eaten.
When do you harvest hawthorn?
Fall/Winter: persistent red 'haws' (berries) feed birds; edible, used for jelly and heart-tonic tea.
How do you propagate hawthorn?
Seed (stratify), cuttings, or layering.
IX
Elsewhere
Where hawthorn sits in the library.
Flowering Dogwood
Eastern Redbud
Crape Myrtle
Maple