Haw x mountain ash
x Sorbocrataegus hybrid
Family: Rosaceae
What it is like
x Sorbocrataegus hybrid is a deciduous Tree growing to 3 m (9ft) by 3 m (9ft) at a medium rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 4. The flowers are pollinated by Insects. It is noted for attracting wildlife. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: neutral soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers moist soil.
Height (m): 3
Where it is found
A cultivated plant.
Hybrid
Conservation Status: Not Listed.
Countries/locations it is found in
How it is used
Food
Rating: 5
Fruit - raw or cooked. Sub-acid. A delicious flavour, it is sweet with a soft juicy flesh and makes an excellent dessert fruit. It can also be cooked and used in pies, preserves etc and can be dried for later use. The fruit ripens in early September in southern Britain. The fruit is about 2cm in diameter. 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.
Medicine
Rating: 0
Other
Rating: 2
Wood - heavy, hard, tough, close-grained. Useful for making tool handles, mallets and other small items.
How it is grown
An interesting and unusual hybrid between Sorbus aucuparia (Mountain Ash) and a Crataegus (Hawthorn). The foliage is similar to the common mountain ash and turns an attractive red in autumn. The wine-red berries are about the size of a small cherry and are best used to make juice, preserves and sauces. Well-drained but moisture-retentive loamy soil, but they will succeed in most other situations including heavy clays and very chalky soils. Once established they are quite drought tolerant, though they will also tolerate quite wet soils and some species succeed even where the water stands in winter. Many species are also very wind tolerant, some of them succeeding in maritime exposure, and they can be included as part of a shelter-belt planting. They are also tolerant of atmospheric pollution and so grow well in towns, cities, by main roads and industrial estates. For the highest fruit production, it is best to grow the plants in as sunny a position as possible, though they will also succeed in semi-shade. A position on the sunny edge of a woodland is probably ideal. For polyculture design as well as the above-ground architecture (form - tree, shrub etc. and size shown above) information on the habit and root pattern is also useful and given here if available. The plant growth habit is a standard with a non-suckering single trunk.
Propagating it: 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. It may still take another 18 months to germinate. Scarifying the seed before stratifying it might reduce this time. Fermenting the seed for a few days in its own pulp may also speed up the germination process. 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. 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.
Best place to grow:
Habit: Tree
Hardiness: 3-8
Growth: Medium
Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)
Shade: No shade
Moisture: Moist
Things to keep in mind
Its other names
Local names
Sorbocrataegus hybrid
Synonyms
No synonyms are recorded for this name.