Pfaf Plant Search

Crataegus pinnatifida major - N.E.Br.

Common Name

Chinese Haw

Family

Rosaceae

Synonyms

C. korolkowii. non Henry.

Known Hazards

None known

Habitats

Riverbanks, on sandy soils or stony slopes[74].

Range

E. Asia - China.

Edibility Rating

Medicinal Rating

Care

Summary

Physical Characteristics

A decidious Tree growing to 7.5 m (24ft 7in).
It is hardy to zone 6 and is not frost tender. It is in flower in May. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Midges.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and can grow in heavy clay soil.The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. and can grow in very alkaline soils.
It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade.It requires moist or wet soil and can tolerate drought.The plant can tolerates strong winds but not maritime exposure.
It can tolerate atmospheric pollution.

Habitats
Woodland Garden Secondary; Sunny Edge; Dappled Shade;

Edible Uses

Edible Parts: Fruit.

Fruit - raw or cooked[3, 105, 177]. A pleasant flavour, it is sold in local markets in China[178]. The fruit can be used in making pies, preserves, etc, and can also be dried for later use. A good size, it is up to 25mm in diameter[200]. There are up to five fairly large seeds in the centre of the fruit, these often stick together and so the effect is of eating a cherry-like fruit with a single seed[K].

Medicinal Uses

Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.

Anticholesterolemic; Cardiotonic; Hypotensive; Stomachic; Vasodilator.

The fruits and flowers of hawthorns are well-known in herbal folk medicine as a heart tonic and modern research has borne out this use. The fruits and flowers have a hypotensive effect as well as acting as a direct and mild heart tonic[222]. They are especially indicated in the treatment of weak heart combined with high blood pressure[222]. Prolonged use is necessary for it to be efficacious[222]. It is normally used either as a tea or a tincture[222]. The fruits are anticholesterolemic, cardiotonic, stomachic and vasodilator. Their use improves the blood circulation and lowers blood pressure[176]. The fruits are used in the treatment of dyspepsia, stagnation of fatty foods, abdominal fullness, retention of lochia, amenorrhoea, postpartum abdominal pain, hypertension and coronary heart disease[176].

Other Uses
Wood - heavy, hard, tough, close-grained. Useful for making tool handles, mallets and other small items[82].

Cultivation details

A very easily grown plant, it prefers a well-drained moisture retentive loamy soil but is not at all fussy[11, 200]. Once established, it succeeds in excessively moist soils and also tolerates drought[200]. It grows well on a chalk soil and also in heavy clay soils[200]. A position in full sun is best when plants are being grown for their fruit, they also succeed in semi-shade though fruit yields and quality will be lower in such a position[11, 200]. Most members of this genus succeed in exposed positions, they also tolerate atmospheric pollution[200]. Hybridizes freely with other members of this genus[200]. Seedling trees take from 5 - 8 years before they start bearing fruit, though grafted trees will often flower heavily in their third year[K]. The flowers have a foetid smell somewhat like decaying fish. This attracts midges which are the main means of fertilization. When freshly open, the flowers have more pleasant scent with balsamic undertones[245]. Seedlings should not be left in a seedbed for more than 2 years without being transplanted[11]. A very ornamental plant, this sub-species is widely cultivated for its edible fruit in China[266], it is larger than the type species[46, 178, 200].

Propagation

Seed - this is best sown as soon as it is ripe in the autumn in a cold frame, some of the seed will germinate in the spring, though most will probably take another year. Stored seed can be very slow and erratic to germinate, it should be warm stratified for 3 months at 15°c and then cold stratified for another 3 months at 4°c[164]. It may still take another 18 months to germinate[78]. Scarifying the seed before stratifying it might reduce this time[80]. Fermenting the seed for a few days in its own pulp may also speed up the germination process[K]. Another possibility is to harvest the seed 'green' (as soon as the embryo has fully developed but before the seedcoat hardens) and sow it immediately in a cold frame. If timed well, it can germinate in the spring[80]. If you are only growing small quantities of plants, it is best to pot up the seedlings as soon as they are large enough to handle and grow them on in individual pots for their first year, planting them out in late spring into nursery beds or their final positions. When growing larger quantities, it might be best to sow them directly outdoors in a seedbed, but with protection from mice and other seed-eating creatures. Grow them on in the seedbed until large enough to plant out, but undercut the roots if they are to be left undisturbed for more than two years.

Expert comment

Author
N.E.Br.

Botanical References
1174200

Links / References

[K] Ken Fern Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[3]Simmons. A. E. Growing Unusual Fruit.

A very readable book with information on about 100 species that can be grown in Britain (some in greenhouses) and details on how to grow and use them.

[11]Bean. W. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement.

A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.

[46]Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants.

An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[74]Komarov. V. L. Flora of the USSR.

An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers.

[78]Sheat. W. G. Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers.

A bit dated but a good book on propagation techniques with specific details for a wide range of plants.

[80]McMillan-Browse. P. Hardy Woody Plants from Seed.

Does not deal with many species but it is very comprehensive on those that it does cover. Not for casual reading.

[82]Sargent. C. S. Manual of the Trees of N. America.

Two volumes, a comprehensive listing of N. American trees though a bit out of date now. Good details on habitats, some details on plant uses. Not really for the casual reader.

[105]Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World.

The most comprehensive guide to edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.

[164]Bird. R. (Editor) Growing from Seed. Volume 4.

Very readable magazine with lots of information on propagation. A good article on Yuccas, one on Sagebrush (Artemesia spp) and another on Chaerophyllum bulbosum.

[176]Yeung. Him-Che. Handbook of Chinese Herbs and Formulas.

An excellent Chinese herbal giving information on over 500 species. Rather technical and probably best suited to the more accomplished user of herbs.

[177]Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption.

An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[178]Stuart. Rev. G. A. Chinese Materia Medica.

A translation of an ancient Chinese herbal. Fascinating.

[200]Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.

Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[222]Foster. S. & Duke. J. A. A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants. Eastern and Central N. America.

A concise book dealing with almost 500 species. A line drawing of each plant is included plus colour photographs of about 100 species. Very good as a field guide, it only gives brief details about the plants medicinal properties.

[245]Genders. R. Scented Flora of the World.

An excellent, comprehensive book on scented plants giving a few other plant uses and brief cultivation details. There are no illustrations.

[266] Flora of China

On-line version of the Flora - an excellent resource giving basic info on habitat and some uses.

Readers comment

Rate This Plant
Please rate this plants for how successful you have found it to be. You will need to be logged in to do this. Our intention is not to create a list of 'popular' plants but rather to highlight plants that may be rare and unusual and that have been found to be useful by website users. This hopefully will encourage more people to use plants that they possibly would not have considered before.

Add a comment/link

If you have important information about this plant that may help other users please add a comment or link below. Only comments or links that are felt to be directly relevant to a plant will be included. If you think a comment/link or information contained on this page is inaccurate or misleading we would welcome your feedback at admin@pfaf.org. If you have questions about a plant please use the Forum on this website as we do not have the resources to answer questions ourselves.

* Please note: the comments by website users are not necessarily those held by PFAF and may give misleading or inaccurate information.

Subject : Crataegus pinnatifida major

Links	To add a link to another website with useful info add the details here
Name of Site
URL of Site
Details

Discussion Monitor
To have posts to this page mailed to you enter your email address here: (Your email address will not appear on the webpage or be passed on to third parties).

Your Address :