The Hawthorn reference article from the English Wikipedia on 24-Jul-2004
(provided by Fixed Reference: snapshots of Wikipedia from wikipedia.org)

Hawthorn

Helping orphans the way you would do it
This article discusses a plant. See Hawthorn, Victoria about a suburb of Melbourne, Australia. See also The Hawthorns for the stadium of West Bromwich Albion F.C in England, named from a hedge of hawthorn that originally encircled the property on which the stadium stands.

Hawthorn
Common hawthorn

Common Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna)
Scientific classification
Kingdom : Plantae
Division : Magnoliophyta
Class : Magnoliopsida
Order : Rosales
Family : Rosaceae
Genus : Crataegus
Species
See text

Hawthorns belong to the genus Crataegus, family Rosaceae.

The number of species in the group may extend to a thousand or more, though some botanists would reduce the number of species considerably. 



Common Hawthorn (close up of flowers)Enlarge
Common Hawthorn (close up of flowers)

Hawthorn is a name given to a large group of shrubs or small trees, characterized by their small, apple-like fruits and thorny branches.  The fruits are sometimes known as 'haws', from which the name derived. The original name was applied to the species native to northern Europe, and especially the common hawthorn, but is now applied to the entire genus. They are native to the temperate northern hemisphere. 

Hawthorns provide food and shelter for many species of birds and mammals. 

Some species and hybrids are used as ornamental and street trees. The common hawthorn is used in Europe as a hedge plant. 










Species

The species include the following;


The flowers of common hawthorn (<em>C. monogyna</em>)Enlarge
The flowers of common hawthorn (C. monogyna)