HAWTHORN
crataegus oxyacantha
AKA
Hawthorne
haw
May bush
May tree
May blossom
mayflower
quickset
thorn-apple tree
whitethorn
PARTS USED
Flowers, leaves and fruit
DESCRIPTION
Hawthorn grows as either a shrub or a tree
in England and continental Europe.
It is widely grown as a hedge plant.
Its trunk or stem have hard wood,
smooth and ash-gray bark, and thorny branches.
Small, shiny leaves are dark green on top,
light bluish green underneath, and
have three irregularly toothed lobes.
White flowers have round petals and grow
in terminal corymbs during May and June.
Fruit or haw is a 2 to 3 seeded, scarlet
on the outside, yellowish and pulpy on the inside.
The following article is reproduced with kind permission
of P.Topham, U.S. Nutritional and Herbal Researcher:
A small native European tree, widespread in hedges,
along road sides and field boundaries.
It has greyish bark, tough, thorny and gnarled branches.
Leaves are dark-green and deeply lobed.
Clusters of white flowers appear May to June followed
by red berries in the autumn.Hawthorn is valued
for its strengthening and normalising effect
on the circulation system.
Studies have shown it dilates the blood vessels and outlying
parts of the body, thereby greatly improving blood flow.
It improves the pumping action, controls both high and low
blood pressure and slows down a fast beat.
Studies have shown that both the berries and the flowers
are astringent* and useful in the treatment of sore throats.
*astringent
- causing contraction of the body tissues,
checking blood flow, or restricting secretions of fluids.
Copyright © 2002 P. Topham:
U.S. Nutritional and Herbal Researcher
- All Rights Reserved
~*~
Cautions
Description
DOSAGE
Folk-lore
History
SOURCES
Lady Tia
© 2000-2002 Shelley Day,
Alternative Healthzine
HOLISTIC ONLINE
Organic Nutrition
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