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VOLUME 8, ISSUE 1 | January 2021
Hawthorn or strawberry tree?
Researched by Rebecca Alexander
detail from Arbutus unedo 4662 by Joy Spurr
Q: Hawthorn fruit is valued in traditional Chinese medicine for digestion, circulation, blood pressure, and anything to do with the heart. What types of hawthorn could I grow here in the Pacific Northwest that share the same medicinal properties as the ones used in China? I found some fruit on a tree in my neighborhood that reminds me of the dried hawthorn fruit we used, but someone told me this was a strawberry tree, not a hawthorn.

A: Strawberry tree is the common name for Arbutus unedo. Its very bumpy fruit (shown in this photo) is edible but not especially tasty (the species name means 'I eat one,' because one would be enough to convince the eater to seek a better food source!). Unlike deciduous hawthorns, Arbutus is evergreen. I can imagine, if you have only seen medicinal hawthorn fruit in dried form, it would be easy to mistake it for the strawberry tree’s fruit. Chinese hawthorn fruit has a comparatively smooth surface, though it is dotted with lenticels (that allow for exchange of gases between the outside world and the fruit’s interior).

Crataegus pinnatifida detail from Flora of China at EFloras.orgWe are not medical professionals, so we cannot address the medicinal benefits of any plant. However, there are several species of Crataegus (hawthorn) that are native to China, and some of these have fruit considered useful for the medicinal purposes you mention. The species that come up most often are Crataegus pinnatifida (shan zha, shown in this drawing) and Crataegus hupehensis. In the article "Hawthorn (Crataegus) Resources in China" (Taijun Guo and Peijuan Jiao, HortScience, Vol. 30(6), October 1995), there is a list of all the species that grow in various regions of China. The most useful ones are likely those that have sizeable fruit. There are also quite a few cultivated varieties, especially of C. pinnatifida , C. scabrifolia, and C. hupehensis. There is some history of hawthorn’s medicinal use in Europe as well, but with different species (mainly Crataegus monogyna— an unregulated noxious weed in King County  — and Crataegus laevigata, previously called C. oxyacantha).

If you search online nursery inventory for the Chinese hawthorn species mentioned above, you will see that a cultivar of Crataegus pinnatifida called 'Red Sun' is available from Raintree Nursery in Washington, and One Green World in Oregon. You could certainly try growing it here, provided you have the right space for a 15-foot tree that needs full sun. When the fruits ripen (in the fall here), you could even scoop out the seeds, fill them with red bean paste, skewer them, and dip them in sugar syrup to make tanghulu, a treat for Chinese New Year.
Lisa Snow Lady's Book of Flowers virtual exhibit
Winter Whites by Lisa Snow Lady Lisa Snow Lady has long featured botanical imagery in her artwork. Her paintings, collages, and mixed media prints have been inspired by city parks, nature reserves, and private gardens for many years. 

The title of this show, Book of Flowers, is a reference to The Book of Hours, a richly illuminated medieval psalter, or devotional book. The artist's sojourns in her own garden this past summer, absorbing the sights, fragrances, and sounds, became a source of reflection, solace, and hope in the midst of the  pandemic. 

Working primarily from flora found in her own garden, Lisa pieced together cut and torn papers to create a unified whole. This creative process also served as a meditative experience. 

Lisa holds a BA in Art History, a BFA in Painting from the University of Washington, and a Certificate in Ornamental Horticulture from Edmonds College. She teaches botanical watercolor classes through the UW Botanic Gardens and is happy to donate 20% of the proceeds of sales from this show to support the Miller Library.
CBHL Annual Literature Award winners announced
The Council on Botanical and Horticultural Libraries (CBHL) Annual Literature Award Committee has honored six remarkable works this year.

The 2020 CBHL Annual Literature Award went to Field Guide to the Grasses of Oregon and Washington by Cindy Talbott Roché, Richard Brainerd, Barbara L. Wilson, Nick Otting, and Robert C. Korfhage, published by Oregon State University Press. This illustrated guide includes all 376 species, subspecies, and varieties of grasses, both native and introduced, that grow wild in Oregon and Washington. Detailed descriptions, range maps, and intricate close-up photographs for each species all contribute to this remarkable work. Award committee members made special mention of the detailed photographs to assist with identification of closely matched species. This work will serve as an excellent model for field guides with a difficult subject and will be a standard for a long time.

CBHL honored Rankafu: Orchid Print Album by Stephen Kirby, Toshikazu Doi and Toru Otsuka from Kew Publishing with the 2020 Award of Excellence in Botanical Art and Illustration. This work features an exceptional set of orchid woodblock prints from early 20th century Japan. Considered masterworks of botanical art, the Rankafu prints are visually stunning and reproduced here in full color, showcasing the fine details of this spectacular art form, and forming an important record of the orchids cultivated in Japan at that time.

The 2020 CBHL Award of Excellence in Gardening and Gardens was presented to Gardening with Native Plants of the Pacific Northwest by Arthur Kruckeberg and Linda Chalker-Scott. This new edition of a classic, first published in 1982, now includes numerous color photographs, updates in taxonomy, and more information about each plant’s habitat requirements and use in restoration projects. This well-written guide will encourage success with using native plants in a garden setting.

The Sakura Obsession: The Incredible Story of the Plant Hunter Who Saved Japan’s Cherry Blossoms by Naoko Abe received the 2020 CBHL Award of Excellence in History. The story of Collingwood “Cherry” Ingram along with his pioneering efforts to save the Japanese cherry trees is recounted in this noteworthy work. Beginning with Ingram’s first visit to Japan in 1907, he was smitten by the sakura, or cherry tree. Through the course of the next decades, Ingram was instrumental in preserving and saving these beloved trees.

This year, CBHL honored two works with the Award of Excellence in Children and Young Adult Literature. What Linnaeus Saw: A Scientist’s Quest to Name Every Living Thing by Karen Magnuson Beil, published by Norton Young Readers, illuminates the story of Carl Linnaeus. Extensively researched, this work will bring the life and influence of this renowned botanist to a new generation. The Night Flower: The Blooming of the Saguaro Cactus by Lara Hawthorne and published by Candlewick Press brings the flora and fauna of the desert to life through rhyming text and watercolor illustrations.

Condensed from an article by Rita Hassert of the Morton Arboretum.
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