Huge snowballs, that's what hawthorns can look like when they blossom in the spring. Hawthorns are resistant to sea winds and therefore were often chosen for planting in the dunes. The clusters of white flowers can be so massive, that they hide the rest of the shrub. Rose bushes have rosehips, hawthorns have haws! That's what their berries are officially called. The haws are highly desired by thrush and blackbirds, as well as by certain winter guests such as fieldfares and redwings. Hawthorns can reach the grand old age of 500. The wood is hard and sturdy, very suitable for wood carvings.