Hawthorn Tree Identification: Leaves, Thorns, Haws

You can identify a hawthorn tree by its deeply lobed small leaves, sharp thorns on the twigs, flat clusters of white five-petaled flowers in late spring, and small red fruits called haws. The five checks, in the order that works best:

• Thorns. Slender brown twigs covered in thorns (Woodland Trust). Wikipedia gives about half an inch for common hawthorn; St. Robert Tree Care describes hawthorn thorns that often measure 1 to 2 inches, and longer in some species.
• Leaves. Alternate and toothed. On common hawthorn the lobes cut at least halfway to the midrib, and Wikipedia says sometimes almost to it. King County's description is the easiest to remember: 3 to 7 lobes, shaped like mittens or paws.
• Flowers. White or occasionally pink, five petals, in flat-topped clusters that King County compares to cherry or apple blossom.
• Haws. Small, round to oval, deep red, with a single seed in common hawthorn. They often stay on the tree into late winter, which helps in the leafless months.
• Bark and form. A small tree or dense shrub with brown-grey, knotted and fissured bark (Woodland Trust).

If a thorny tree has black fruit, barely lobed leaves, or two or more seeds per fruit, read the comparisons below before settling on common hawthorn.

In the Pacific Northwest the native black hawthorn (Crataegus douglasii) and the introduced common hawthorn grow side by side. King County gives the quick split: black hawthorn has barely lobed leaves and blackish fruits, common hawthorn has deeply lobed leaves and bright red fruits. Wikipedia adds detail for black hawthorn:

• Leaves: fan-shaped, 2.5 to 5 cm long, toothed toward the tip and usually only slightly lobed.
• Thorns: straight and stout, 1 to 2.5 cm long, against about 12.5 mm on common hawthorn.
• Fruit: blackish, about 1 cm across, with 3 to 5 stony seeds, where common hawthorn has one.
• Size and range: up to 8 to 9 m (26 to 30 feet); native to northern and western North America and most abundant in the Pacific Northwest, on forest edges, streamsides, thickets and coastal bluffs.

King County also warns that the two hybridize, and hybrids can show a mix of both sets of features. Cutting open a fruit and counting the seeds is a useful tiebreaker.

In Britain and in gardens the other common species is Midland hawthorn (Crataegus laevigata). The Woodland Trust and Wikipedia agree on the differences:

• Styles in the flower: one in common hawthorn (hence monogyna), two or three in Midland hawthorn.
• Seeds per fruit: one in common hawthorn, two in Midland hawthorn.
• Leaves: common hawthorn's lobes are cut deeper and spread wider; Midland hawthorn's leaves are less deeply cut.

The two hybridize too; Wikipedia gives the hybrid the name Crataegus x media.

• Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa). Both are thorny hedgerow shrubs with white spring flowers. The Woodland Trust's winter test: on blackthorn the buds grow on the spines, while on hawthorn the spines emerge from the same point as the buds.
• Black hawthorn and Midland hawthorn, compared above.
• Fruit trees in bloom. King County notes hawthorn's flower clusters look like cherry or apple blossom, so a flowering hawthorn in a hedge is easy to take for a wild cherry or crab apple at a distance. The thorns and the small lobed leaves settle it.
• Ornamental hawthorns. Garden cultivars such as Winter King, Washington hawthorn and cockspur hawthorn are hawthorns too; St. Robert Tree Care notes Winter King has fewer thorns than many other hawthorns, bright red fruit and silver-gray bark.

• Thorns. St. Robert Tree Care notes long, stiff thorns that complicate pruning and maintenance.
• Diseases. Fire blight (blackened flowers and branch tips), rust (orange or yellow leaf spots) and apple scab (olive-green to black leaf spots), per St. Robert Tree Care; the Woodland Trust adds aphids and gall mites.
• Invasiveness in the Pacific Northwest. King County says common hawthorn forms dense, thorny thickets that outcompete native plants and block the movement of large animals, and birds spread its seeds into woods and fields. It is listed there as a non-regulated Class C noxious weed.

King County's control notes: pull seedlings when the soil is moist; larger plants need extensive digging; mowing only works on a strict schedule, and cutting alone does not kill the plant.

The Woodland Trust describes common hawthorn as supporting hundreds of other species: it is a food plant for many moth caterpillars, its flowers give nectar and pollen to bees, its haws feed migrating birds and small mammals, and its dense, thorny growth makes safe nesting cover. It has long been planted as a hedge, and the Woodland Trust notes its timber is used for turnery and engraving.

Both the Woodland Trust and Wikipedia mention traditional food uses of the leaves, flowers and haws. Do not eat any wild plant on the strength of an identification from a page or an app: have it confirmed by someone who knows the local flora, and if anyone becomes unwell after eating part of a plant, contact your local poison control center or a doctor.

• A twig with leaves, flat against your palm, showing lobe depth
• A close-up of a thorn where it meets the twig, with a bud in view
• Flowers or fruit when present; cut one haw in half to show the seeds
• The whole plant, showing whether it is a tree or a thicket

NatureLens identifies the tree from a photo, with free scans every day. Use the leaf lobes and seed count on this page to confirm which hawthorn it is. For other trees, see our tree leaf identification guide.

Research and drafting for this page used AI assistance. Every number, date, price and claim was then checked against the sources listed below, which were opened and read on 2026-09-25. Where a source could not be opened directly, the fact was confirmed on another page from the same organization, and the organization is named in the text.