THE AUDUBON BULLETIN 



11 



Photo by Orpheus M. Schantz 



THE HAWTHORN AS A WINTER ASSET 



growth at the forest 

 edges. Where the soil 

 is to its liking it fre- 

 quently becomes a nui- 

 sance as from its re- 

 markably p r o 1 i fi c 

 fruiting it springs up 

 wherever there is an 

 opening, often form- 

 ing almost impenetra- 

 ble thickets. 



The coloring of the 

 fruits runs from 

 bright scarlet to dark 

 red and from green 

 to yellow, the 

 shapes and size, too, 

 vary greatly. Some 

 pear shaped, others spherical, while still others are angled 

 showing distinctly the number of nutlets contained. The seeds or 

 nutlets are of extreme hardness, and being indigestible do not 

 lose their germinating power when eaten by birds and animals. 

 This accounts for their wide distribution and for their being 

 found in unaccountable locations. 



Because of the haw- 

 thorn's ability to re- 

 cover and thicken up 

 after being browsed 

 by cattle, it is fre- 

 quently used for a 

 hedge growth. One 

 prominent nursery- 

 man predicted to the 

 writer that the time 

 would come when it 

 would be the most 

 widely used tree for 

 that purpose in Amer- 

 ica. While ordinarily 

 the hawthorn does not 

 grow to great size, in- 

 dividual trees are 

 known with trunks of 



the diameter of two feet. Such trees have dense canopy tops and 

 are wonderfully beautiful in spring, summer, autumn, and 

 winter. In the denser forests among the taller trees, the form of 

 growth is slender and irregular. 



At all times, however, one is impressed by the appearance of 

 strength, vitality, and ability to thrive under hard conditions. 



Photo by Orpheus M. Schantz 



THE HAWTHORN AS A SUMMER ASSET 



