Growing Tips for Hawthorn Trees

Hawthorn is a large shrub or a small tree that is in the rose family. The tree will grow an average of one foot per year. This three-season ornamental tree features lovely flowers in spring, red fruit in late summer, and beautiful fall color.  Plant the hawthorn as an accent tree close to a picture window as you will want to view this tree in spring summer and fall. 

Accent your landscape with a flowering Hawthorn Tree:  Image Credit

Choosing a Hawthorn Tree:
Buy a hawthorn tree from a nursery or garden center.  Look for a healthy 2 to 4-foot tree with branches and green leaves.  

Where and When to Plant
Plant the tree in early spring or as soon as you can loosen the soil with your shovel. Hawthorn trees prefer to grow in an area that is rich in limestone with a sandy loom. However, the hawthorn will tolerate ordinary soil also. A location with the full sun with well-drained soil is agreeable to the hawthorn tree.

How to Plant a Tree
Dig a hole that is the same depth as the container and is the same width.  Loosen the soil with your hands to remove all of the clumps and to make the texture of the soil fine.
Remove the tree from a plastic container or if the tree is wrapped in a 100% burlap wrapping then release the burlap from around the tree trunk and pull back.  Otherwise, set the burlap-covered root ball into the hole.  As long as there is no wax coating on the burlap covering the roots will grow through the covering and growth will be fine.

Backfill the hole with soil.  Pack the soil so that there are no air pockets.  Water the tree well.

You can grow a hawthorn from a seed.  It is best to start tree seeds under a grow light indoors in late winter.  Your hawthorn seedling should grow an average of 1 foot in the first year.  Keep the seedling in a pot until it is approximately 12 inches then transplant outdoors in early spring after the threat of frost has passed.  

Care for Hawthorn Tree
Fertilize the hawthorn tree with water mixed (10-10-10) solution. Pour fertilizer around the base of the tree or fertilize it with organic tree stakes.  It is best to fertilize the hawthorn tree Every other spring and your tree will grow healthy.

Apply three inches of organic mulch; pine needles, grass clippings, or chipped trees around the tree.  Do not use synthetic mulch.
Keep soil evenly moist but not wet throughout the growing season.  If your autumn season is warm then continue to water the new tree until there is a hard freeze.  

Points of Interest:

1. Branches with berries look great dried and added to floral arrangements.
2. The Hawthorn tree brings luck to the owner,
3. Cedar apple rust can be a problem.
4. Branches have sharp thorns and children should avoid the tree.
5. The winter red hawthorn berries provide a reliable food source for the birds and in the spring the tree will provide shelter for nesting birds.
6. The bark is gray and smooth.
7. Mature hawthorn trees are 16 to 49 feet tall
8. Jesus Christ wore a crown of thorns made from branches from the hawthorn tree.

Attract Wildlife with Crabapple Tree

Crabapple in full bloom

Grow a crabapple tree for wildlife and for beauty. This tree is eye appealing in spring when flowers will cover every inch of the branches.  The spring blooms attract orioles and warblers, these birds enjoy the nectar that is found in the flowers.  

In late summer the tree will bear fruit, the fruit is small only two inches in diameter and the appearance is much like a normal apple.  The fruit has a bitter taste however it is edible and you can make crabapple jelly. 

I prefer to grow the tree for wildlife forage. Mockingbirds, bluebirds, robins, and waxwings eat crabapples.  Another way to feed wildlife is from the insects that are attracted to the fruit.  These insects provide forage for birds and bats. The small apple-shaped fruit will stay on the tree throughout the winter season. This fruit is forage for deer, possums, and raccoons.

When I moved to the central states I joined the Arbor Day Foundation and in return they sent me 3 flowering trees.  These trees were 16 inches tall when I planted them and within two years my crabapple was three feet tall with a similar spread. 

As I recall the crabapple bloomed the second year that I had planted it and produced fruit in late summer.  The tree grew an average of one foot per year and when fully grown it was 25 feet in height.  If you want to add a focal point to your landscape and attract birds and wildlife to your yard then grow a flowering crabapple tree.