Crataegus castlegarensis

Castlegar hawthorne

Family: Rosaceae · Type: shrub · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 3

Castlegar hawthorn is a California native shrub found in the northern California Range and Modoc Plateau in streamsides, meadows, scrub, and forest at elevations of 900 to 1,300 meters. Flowering from May to August, this plant produces white flowers with pink anthers approximately 12 to 15 millimeters in diameter, arranged in hairy clusters. Growing with distinctive thorns 18 to 23 millimeters long, typically appearing in pairs or small groups, it forms a dense branching structure. Its leaves are short and relatively small, measuring 3.5 to 6 centimeters long, with an elliptic or narrow obovate shape, wedge-shaped base, and shallowly lobed edges with acute tips. The fruit is a nearly spherical deep purple to black drupe about 10 to 12 millimeters in diameter, containing 3 to 4 stones.

Habitat: Streamsides in meadows, scrub, forest

Bloom period: May-Aug

Elevation: 900-1300 m

Bioregions: CaR, MP

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.