Ipsophyto

Cratageus oxycantha/monogyna   Rosacea family

This tree is a truly remarkable species, common as you like, up and down the UK.

It is a common hedge plant and you can find it at the edges of woodlands, even as little groves of its own in some districts as well as it being a tree happy on its own in a myriad random places.

There are far to numerous hawthorns to mention ( more thn 200 speices plus cultivars and hybrids a-plenty, so im sticking to the two most common species we are likey to find in the wild, and it is pleasing to know the medicinal benefits are very similar and we can use either one interchangably.

The ‘Mayflower’ as they are commonly known by this author is a beautiful shrubby tree crossover, sometimes sprouting numerous suckers and sometimes growing up a standard single trunk. 

It has terminal branches decorated with sharp inch long thorns with  reasonably small leaves which are generally lobed into three distinct sections. (leaf lobe depth being one of the defining characteristics when it comes to positively identifying species, another being the number of seeds within the ‘haws’…monogyna therefore meaning one ovary, one seed)

The leaves breaking out are one of the first woodland species to herald the returning spring, breaking bud generally around the end of February, and within a couple of months,  swelling flower buds soon burst into spectacular display, revealing the common white flowers, beloved of Beltane lovers everywhere.

The flowers comprise of five petals ( as most of the rose family do) with numerous stamens producing a gorgeous pink inner flush to the corolla although many parks throughout the land have chosen a red flower cultivar which you may have seen, which may explain its appearance in the wild every now and again.

As apparant from its common name aforementioned, this plant is full in flower at end of April/beginning of May.

At this time of year the flowers and leaves will yield one of the most potent heart medicines you can get….anti-oxidants in the form of Oligomeric proanthocyanidans! These anti-oxidants are being saluted by the Daily mail as amazing anti-aging, pro-good health compounds for which you could pay £50 for a few grams of exotic berries shipped from halfway arounfd the world.

No need my friends, for we have the superfoods on our doorstep, its just that…surprise surprise, hawthorns arent being advertised because they are free. There is probably no better heart tonic in the land. Just the thing that stressed out 21st century males need i reckon. Anything is better than the array of mess-you-up-and-keep-you-hooked-statin drugs and beta-blockers so loved by the doctors in cahoots with pharmaceutical companies

But better than this is the fact thet come the autumn and early winter, we can go back to the same trees we visited for leaves and flowers early in the season and then harvest the berries which are EVEN MORE rammed with the Oligomeric pro-anthocyanidans contained within the pigments found in the haws.

Ok, the common or garden haws are not superbly tasting off the hedgerow plants, due to their small size and tough living conditions, but they are more than palatable raw, yet even better processed into a fruit leather Ray Mears stylee. With this process,  aonce mealy and unsweet berry takes on an amazing sweetness due to its internal acids conversion to sugars within the oxidised fruit.

Medicinal constituents include:

Flavonoid glycosides inncluding rutin & quercitrin. Sapponins, coumarin, cyanogenic glycosides, trimethylamine, condensed tannins.

Pharmacology:

The flavonoid fraction is vaso-dilatory as also is condensed tannins. They not only dilate the peripheral circulation significantly but have a specific action on the coronary circulation.

There are numerous hawthorn species which have beautiful tastin berries. In University parks Oxford, there are at least a dozen species which have orange, scarlet, brown and soft red haws, all exhibiting a diverse array of flavours ranging from peach to apple and orange scents. These bigger fruiting varieties are available from suppliers such as the Agro-forestry research trust in Dartington, Devon.

Just passing by.Btw, you website have great content!

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Comment by Mike March 1, 2009 @ 8:59 am

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