SafePlants

Downy Hawthorn (Crataegus mollis)

Considerations for Pets

• The Downy Hawthorn has varying degrees of thorniness.
• The plant produces red fruit.

Considerations for Children

• The Downy Hawthorn has varying degrees of thorniness.
• The plant produces red fruit.

Common Names

• Downy Hawthorn
• Red Hawthorn
• Red Haw

Taxonomy and Nomenclature

• Scientific Name: Crataegus mollis
• Family: Rosaceae (Rose Family)
• Synonym: C. coccinea mollis
• French Name: Aubpine duveteuse
• Taxonomic Serial Number: 24585

Distribution and Habitat

• Native to eastern North America, ranging from southeastern North Dakota east to Nova Scotia, and south through the Dakotas and Virginia.
• Grows in bottomlands and open woods.
• Hardy to zone 3.

Morphological Characteristics and Growth Habits

• A large shrub or small deciduous tree reaching 20-40 feet in height at maturity.
• Has a rounded to wide-spreading habit with horizontal branching.
• Bark is gray and the tree has varying degrees of thorniness, sometimes nearly thornless.
• Leaves are simple, ovoid, up to 4 inches long, deeply serrated and densely fuzzy on the underside early in the growing season. Can produce good fall colors.
• Showy white 1-inch flowers appear in clusters in late April-early May.
• Bright red edible fruit ripens in late summer.
• Plant spacing should be 20-25 feet.

Ecological Role

• The Downy Hawthorn provides wildlife benefits and cover.
• It attracts Red Headed Woodpeckers.

Quirky Facts

• In 1923, the Downy Hawthorn (Crataegus mollis) was approved as Missouri's official state flower.
• The Downy Hawthorn is shade intolerant and very long lived.
• One Downy Hawthorn in Ohio was listed as the largest known tree of its species in the American Forests Champion Trees in 2009.

Further Information

• MGE's Tree and Shrub Database
• Wikimedia Commons