A thorny shrub or small tree that produces white or pink flowers in spring and red berries in autumn, often used in hedges.
From Old English 'hægðorn,' combining 'hæg' (hedge) and 'thorn.' The plant's primary use was creating sturdy hedgerows, so it was literally 'the thorn of the hedge.'
Hawthorn is absolutely loaded with folklore—in Celtic cultures it was magical and sometimes unlucky to cut down. But more scientifically, hawthorn berries have been used in herbal medicine for heart health for centuries, and modern studies actually support some of these traditional uses!
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