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tagsOur neighbors have a Hawthorn tree that hangs over our fence. In the spring it's beautifully covered in flowers.
Previously, before we knew the genus, we simply called it "the bee tree" since it attracted so many bees.
The literature I've read seems to indicate they are impossible to propagate from cuttings. I really like this tree, and we'd like to plant a stand of them in Virginia.
It also seems to indicate that Hawthorns freely cross-pollinate, and I'm not even certain to get trees similar to this one or each other. But I figure it's worth a shot.
The free hybridization of Hawthorn can be seen from the species list alone.
Once the fruit is ripe in the fall, I can collect it and separate out the seeds. It appears that with some stratification and scarification I may be able to get them to germinate by the following spring.
Is growing trees from seed a fool's errand or ultimately a worthwhile task?
Responses
If your yard is frequented by Bambi and her family, growing growing hawthorn can be a challenge. Deer seems to really like it and will eat the foliage down to the ground. I had to surround mine with a one-wire electric fence.
The fence can offer some real amusement if you have a grandchild like mine that likes to touch everything before asking "what is this?" He now occasionally touches it to see if it is on (it is generally off since I have it on a timer, but with power outages, the timer occasionally gets off). I do wonder about that boy.