Hawthorn

Crataegus monogyna

Rosaceae

Hedgerow thorn whose leaf, flower, and berry are Europe's classic heart trophorestorative.

Traditional heart tonic. Not a replacement for cardiac care.

Parts used: Flowering tops · Berry
Traditional notes: Heart palpitations from nerves · Aging circulation · Adjunct in early cardiac weakness (clinician-directed) · Grief (folk)
Grow · USDA 6b: Small tree / hedge, USDA 4–7 Haws need a long double dormancy. Buy a whip and plant a hedge. In work: May · Sep · Oct · Nov
Harvest: Blossoms just open; berries when fully red/dark after first frost.

A hedge plant. First haws take years — this is a tree crop.
Do not strip a wild tree. Plant one and wait.
Berries are the usual harvest; flowering tops are a shorter spring window.

Safety

Undiagnosed chest pain — seek emergency care, do not self-treat

Lore

A hedge plant of boundaries and, in British folklore, unlucky to bring indoors. The berries are a mild cardiac tonic in the European record, a mealy fruit in the hand. May blossom smells of sex and almonds; the old songs knew.

The Herbarium — a teaching catalog, not a clinic. Traditional use is history, not a prescription. USDA 6b dates are a week either way, not a promise. Do not eat, drink, or harvest a plant you cannot name.