Green Hawthorn

Crataegus viridis

native · Central Texas

Green Hawthorn is a tree native to Central Texas that grows 20–30 ft tall and 30 ft wide. It wants full sun or part shade and high water, and handles clay soil. Blooms white in early spring. Deer rarely browse it. Good for birds and butterflies.

Wet ground only. Usually found in wetlands and creek bottoms. It wants reliably moist ground and struggles in a dry upland bed.

Will it grow in your yard?

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The facts

5 sources

Type: Tree
Sun: Full sun to part shade (3–6 hrs of direct sun)
Water: High
Height: 20–30 ft
Spread: 30 ft
Bloom: Early Spring · white
Foliage: Deciduous or dies back in winter
Soil: Takes clay · recorded on clay, loam, moist, sand
Deer: High — deer rarely browse it
Wildlife: Supports birds and butterflies

Where it grows

Recorded in these EPA Level IV ecoregions in the Austin and Hill Country launch area:

Northern Blackland PrairieSouthern Post Oak SavannaFloodplains and Low Terraces

85 occurrence records in Central Texas (GBIF).

Can you buy it?

Also grows here — hard to find. Native and recorded growing in Central Texas, but not on the grower stock lists we read. Sourcing varies: some are stocked widely, others you will have to hunt for.

also grows from seed It starts readily from seed, so a packet from a native-seed supplier, or seed collected with permission, is often the easiest way to get a plant no nursery pots.