Hundredfold Black Hawthorn 10 Seeds - Crataegus douglasii Pacific Northwest Native Shrub, Small Fruit Tree
- A large shrub to small tree that grows up to 8 metre tall, bears showy, white flowers in late spring.
- Black hawthorns like lots of sunlight to grow to tree size.
- The apple-like fruit provides food for birds in the winter.
- The impenetrable hawthorn thickets are good nesting and resting sites for small birds and mammals.
This species is a handsome ornamental with showy white flowers and shiny black fruits. Cattle and sheep browse the foliage; pheasants, partridges, quail, and other birds consume the berries. The most widespread western member of its genus, Black Hawthorn is also the only species north to southeastern Alaska.
Hundredfold Note: Crab apples vs. Callery pears
Apples and pears belong to the same family of Rosaceae, consisting of many common fruit trees. Although it is called a pear, Callery pear is highly unwelcome in Canada. Unfortunately, the area where I work is infested with Callery pears (aka, Bradford pears). These invasive trees freely help themselves along the highway, forming ugly canopies that block everything underneath. Furthermore, their offensive smell keeps many away. If you have a Callery pear in your place, yesterday would have been a good day to cut it down.
Luckily, this area has a few crab apples to decorate itself. Opposite to the Callery pears, crab apples do nothing but good. The bloom is nice and the fruits are scented. They also host an army of beneficial insects and birds. Replacing the invasive pears with crab apples would be the right thing to do, for the outlook of your landscape and your health.