Rosaceae
Crataegus douglasii

Black Hawthorn

Deciduous upright shrub or small tree usually with 1/2–3/4 in. thorns. Leaves on short twigs, usually about 2 in. long, wedge-shaped, entire to slightly toothed at narrow base, sides rounded to wide toothed or shallowly lobed tip. Flowers clustered at branch tips or in leaf axils, 5 white petals from cup-shaped base, 10 stamens. Fruit plump, purple-black, with 4–5 hard seeds, edible. Grows along streams, in forests, meadows, ditches, fencerows, sagebrush, at low to high elevations. Similar C. suksdorfii, with 20 stamens, grows in western Washington, western British Columbia, and from Willamette Valley to southwestern Oregon.

  • Rarity: Locally Common
  • Flowering Time: Late Spring
  • Life Cycle: Perennial
  • Height: 6--18 feet
  • Habitat: Meadow, West-Side Forest, East-Side Forest
  • Found In: Siskiyous, Steens, N Cascades Np
  • Native: Yes