A hawthorn is a hawthorn, no? It is, unless it's a midland hawthorn. They aren't frequently seen but then midland hawthorns are most easily spotted when they are in flower. This is because the flowers have one very obvious difference from common hawthorns - they're often rosy red, rather than milky white. I think the red-flowered midland hawthorn is a garden escapee. The berries are still a useful food source, the thorny branches are good nesting sites and they don't pollute the gene pool of an endangered species. As escapees go, I reckon that makes them pretty harmless (Home Office take note).
There's a small stand of midland hawthorn near Scarthingwell, north-east of Garforth, a sight well worth seeing whilst still in flower.
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3 comments:
What a great drawing! You sound so knowledgable, too - that makes it an interesting read. :-)
I fell across your blog a while ago and love your sketches and ramblings makes me feel I know a bit about your area
Penny in Victor Harbor South Australia
Oh I didn't know that, about red hawthorn. Ours is over now,and turned into berries.
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