Common Hawthorn

Trees or shrubs up to 10 m. Twigs glabrous rarely villose. Thorny or thornless, thorns up to 25 (-70) mm. Buds 1.1–2.8 × 1.1–2.5 mm. Leaves ±coriaceous, ±greyish below, glabrous to villose or villose on veins beneath, attenuate to widely cuneate at base, lobes obtuse to acute, entire to incised serrate at margin. Subterminal leaf blades of flowering shoots 10–35 (-57) × 8–30 (-60) mm, lobes (0-) 1–2 (-3) pairs, basal sinuses close to midvein, angles of basal vein at or wider than 45°, rarely narrower, basal lobes entire or with 2–4 (-9) serrate teeth in distal 1/2 to 3/4, petiole (1-) 5–15 (-30) mm; stipules (1-) 3–10 (-16) × 0.2–0.4 mm, entire or irregularly glandular serrate with 1–5 (-8) teeth. Subterminal leaf blades of short shoots (10-) 15–35 (-57) × (8-) 15–30 (-55) mm, lobes (0-) 1–2 (-3) pairs, basal sinuses reach to half lamina or close to midvein, lobes entire or with (2-) 4–8 (-14) teeth in the distal 1/3 to 1/8, petiole 5–15 (-45) mm, stipules undeveloped or (1-) 2–3 mm, entire or with 2–4 teeth. Middle leaf blades of elongate shoots 20–40 (-60) × 20–40 (-65) mm, 2–3 (-4) pairs, basal lobes with (0-) 3–5 (-16) teeth in distal 1/4 to 1/8, petiole (6-) 10–20 (-25) mm; stipules (4-) 8–15 (-20) × 2–4 (-8) mm, entire or irregularly serrate with 2–10 (-35) teeth. Inflorescence (10-) 15–35 (-50) × 15–45 mm, corymbose, lax, (5-) 8–15 (-20) flowered, glabrous to villose, pedicels 4–10 (-32) mm, bracts 0.5–8 (-10) × 0.1–0.5 mm, deciduous, linear-lanceolate, entire or denticulate with 1–4 teeth. Flowers (5-) 8–12 mm in diameter; hypanthium 2–4 × 2–3 mm; sepals 1.2–4 × 1.2–2.6 mm, widely triangular margin entire, acute or obtuse; petals (3-) 4–5 (-7) × 4–6 (-7) mm; stamens (15-) 18–20, anthers maroon; styles 1. Fruit 5–11 × 4–7 (-10) mm, globose to cylindrical, red to dark red, rarely orange, glabrous or sparsely villose, flesh yellowish, juicy to mealy, sepals recurved at maturity; pyrenes 4–6 (-9) × 3–5 (-8) mm, 1 (-2), dorsally and ventro-laterally entire or striate, hypostyle glabrous.