Southern Hawthorn (Crataegus viridus 'Winter King')

Seeing some wonderful small trees laden with deep-red fruits in a parking lot planting had me returning for a photo today.  These trees were part of an exceptionally well-done planting outside an upscale grocery. Admirable!

What had me puzzled initially is what the heck these trees were, and why aren't they planted everywhere?  They're that striking.

They turned out to be most likely our native Southern or Green hawthorn, Crataegus viridis, and probably the cultivar 'Winter King' based on the size of the fruits.  I have no idea why they're not more widely planted -- there must be 20 included in this parking lot planting, and they're amazing right now. 

I've seen one or two planted elsewhere here in the mountains, but obviously not often enough to be reminded of them.  They're apparently not heat-tolerant (zone 4- zone 7a), so Piedmont 7b must be too hot (either during the day or at night).

Parking lot planting of Crataegus viridus 'Winter King'

Crataegus viridus 'Winter King'
This is a nice account of the virtues of  Crataegus viridis 'Winter King'.

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