Feature Tree – June 2006
Crimson Cloud
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Crimson Cloud Hawthorn, Craetagus laevigata “Crimson Cloud” (Rosaceae family)

Habit:  Tree has an upright elliptical growth habit.  When established it can grow better than a foot a year, which is unusual for a hawthorn.   Mature height will be somewhere around 20 feet with a spread of 15 feet. 

Hardiness:  Zone 4 to 6    

Leaves:  Attractive deep green finely-toothed leaves throughout the summer.           

Twigs:  Young twigs are golden brown in color.  They also grow in a wavy manner, which adds to the winter character of the tree.        

Bark:  The bark is a golden brown color on young branches that are smaller than two inches in diameter.  As the main trunk and branches mature the golden bark begins to turn gray and flake off.    

Flowers:  Small ½ inch beautiful red flowers with a white center.  Flowers cover the tree just as leaves are emerging.  These flowers are gorgeous when examined up close.    

Fruit:  Small ¼ to ⅓ inch fleshy apple-like fruit.  Green fruit in the early summer turn bright red in the fall and are persistent on the tree through the winter. 

Landscape Value:  Crimson Cloud is a selection of English hawthorn.  The strikingly beautiful red flowers in the spring make this an excellent hawthorn selection for accent type plantings.  Tree is very adaptable to Colorado’s diverse soil types.  It does very well in clay soils and has not exhibited the typical chlorotic (i.e., yellow) leaf symptoms sometimes caused by clay soils. 

Diseases/Insects:  Only pests observed on Colorado planted material were aphids, pear sawfly and occasionally cedar-hawthorn rust.  None of these pests are serious enough to warrant not using Crimson Cloud in the landscape. 

Information and Photo Sources: 

            Manual of Woody Landscape Plants, Michael A. Dirr
            Oregon Landscape Plants, http://oregonstate.edu/dept/ldplants/megl.htm