Crataegus senta Play pronunciation

Rough hawthorn is a native deciduous large shrub or small tree found in the southeastern United States from North Carolina south to northern Florida and in Louisiana. It is most common in central South Carolina, and may be found in dry, sandy, or rocky soils. It grows 10 to 20 feet tall and 10 to 15 feet wide with a broad, open crown and often drooping branches. Although uncommon in North Carolina, some specimens may be found in the southern half of the Coastal Plain and Piedmont in dry pine woods, open scrub, and sand plains. Like most hawthorns, rough hawthorn has long, straight thorns, clusters of white blossoms that bloom in the spring, and small, edible, red fruits that appear in the fall. It is a member of the rose family (Rosaceae).

Rough hawthorn prefers dry or sandy, well-drained, slightly acidic to neutral soils and partial shade.  It is a host plant for the larvae of the Gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus), Red-Spotted Purple (Limenitis arthemis astyanax), and Viceroy (Limenitis archippus) butterflies. Its thorns provide a safe habitat for birds, and the nectar is a food source for pollinators.

The leaves are dull green on the upper surface and paler beneath. Each leaf is ovate to cuneate, rough, and the lower margins of the leaf are entire, but the distal margins are crenate to serrate. The thorns may be straight or recurved.

Some sources list the rough hawthorn's global status as critically imperiled (G2). In North Carolina, this species is ranked SH (possibly extirpated), only known from historical records, but presence has not been verified in the past 20 to 40 years, or S1? (critically imperiled). 

Very little is known or documented about this species since the plant was described in the 1900s. In the past, it has been observed in Buncombe, Macon, Bladen, and Carteret Counties of North Carolina.

Diseases, Insects, and Other Plant Problems: Potential insect pests of hawthorns include aphids, borers, webworms, Japanese beetles, lace bugs, leaf miners, sawflies, scale, and spider mites. Most hawthorns are susceptible to blight and fungal rust.