Hawthorn is grown in the form of a bush or tree. He can live 400 years and reach a height of 10 meters. From this plant, a wonderful hedge is obtained, large-fruited varieties delight with a harvest of healthy and tasty berries.
Description of hawthorn fruit
The fruits of hawthorn are edible, but not all are distinguished by high palatability. They are spherical or pear-shaped; color, depending on the type, can be a combination of yellow, orange and red shades; there are fruits of black color. In the pulp of yellow, red or green color seeds are located in an amount from 1 to 5. Seeds are trihedral, with a hard shell.
Photo Gallery: Variety of Hawthorn Fruit
- Chinese hawthorn has almost no thorns
- Pontic hawthorn is only suitable for warm regions
- The fruits of the large-fruited garden hawthorn look like apples
- Canadian hawthorn fruits are almost purple
In decorative varieties of hawthorn berries are small, up to 1 cm, and dry. In fruit varieties, they look like small apples, fleshy, with a sour taste; fruit diameter reaches 3 cm. Hawthorn berries are collected in a brush.
Table: varieties of hawthorn
| Grade name | Fruit color | Fruit size, cm | Taste qualities |
| Softish | Orange red | 2 | +++++ |
| Zbigniew | Bright red | 2 | +++++ |
| Lyudmil | Orange red | 2 | +++ |
| Shamil | Red | 2 | +++++ |
| Eastern orange | Yellow | 2 | +++++ |
| Chinese | Red | 3 | +++++ |
| Far Eastern green meat | The black | 1 | +++ |
| Canadian red | Dark purple | 1,5 | very juicy |
| Pontic | Yellow, green and yellow | 3 | +++++ |
It is recommended to add hawthorn fruits when cooking jam and jams, because they contain a lot of pectin and give the workpieces a spicy taste.
When the hawthorn begins to bear fruit
Depending on the species, the hawthorn begins to bear fruit in the 5-15th year of life. Large-fruited varieties give the first crop for the 5-6th year, decorative - much later.
During the first years of life, hawthorn grows very slowly. Its growth is enhanced when it reaches 4-5 years. The faster the crown grows, the sooner the tree will begin to bear fruit. Grafted plants bloom in the 3-4th year.
Large-fruited Chinese hawthorn, one of the most delicious varieties, begins to bear fruit in 3 years.
Blooming hawthorn in May - June. It does not bloom for long; flowers attract bees with a disgusting smell.
During flowering, the smell of rotten fish is felt near the tree due to the content of dimethylamine in the flowers.
Varieties of different maturity
Having reached adulthood, hawthorn annually is able to delight with a rich harvest - up to 50 kg per tree. The weather conditions affect the quantity and quality of the crop: if it rained or fogged during flowering, there will be few berries on the tree. Depending on the variety, the crop is harvested from August to October.
Varieties of medium ripening period (August - early September):
- Far Eastern green meat;
- Busing;
- Timiryazevets;
- Shamil;
- Zbigniew;
- Softish.
Late varieties (end of September - October):
- Chinese;
- Siberian;
- Gold;
- Lyudmil.
Why hawthorn does not give a crop, how to solve the problem
After planting a hawthorn in your garden, be patient: you will not be able to enjoy the fruits soon. To guarantee a good harvest and steady fruiting, it is necessary to fulfill a number of conditions:
- Get grafted hawthorn seedlings. This will reduce the waiting time for fruiting to begin.
- Plant a few seedlings of hawthorn. This plant is self-fertile, but cross-pollination contributes to better fruit set.
- To place seedlings in the garden, choose a sunny place.
- Do not cut the trees from which you plan to collect fruits. Strong pruning damages flowering and reduces yield.
Experienced gardeners recommend accelerating fruiting in May to cut the bark on several branches 10-15 cm from the trunk (the tree may bloom the next year after this procedure).
For the same purpose, wire rings are put on branches.
Read more about hawthorn care in our article - Hawthorn: From Wildlife to Cultural Gardens.
Video: how to make a tree bear fruit earlier
Hawthorn is unpretentious, it is easy to grow in the garden. The tips above will help you harvest a large crop from this healthy tree every year.
