At the Sarasota County UF/IFAS Extension Office, we’ve been cultivating a Food Forest to showcase the most productive, unique, and often underutilized fruits and crops suited to our distinctive southwest Florida climate. Through this project, we aim to inspire and educate our community by offering a firsthand look at these remarkable trees, shrubs, and vines, allowing visitors to sample flavors before purchasing, and providing opportunities to gather seeds and cuttings.
To deepen community engagement, we’re launching a monthly blog series that will highlight the best edible plants to harvest each month. While some trees are still maturing and may take a few years to reach full production, we invite you to visit anytime and enjoy the fruits that are ready now. Come experience the abundance and potential of local, sustainable gardening that can be added into your landscape. Nothing will be fresher or more fulfilling than something you grow and pick yourself!
As an amateur horticulturist and plant collector, my favorite plants to work with are those that that either have true food value, outstanding native wildlife benefits, and/or rich ethnobotanical history. Few plants have all three — but right now, in late April and into May on the Suncoast, one of the best examples of all three is producing in abundance. That plant is the native Mayhaw, also known as Apple Hawthorn Crataegus aestivalis.
A beautiful tree in the rose family
Mayhaw belongs to the rose family, Rosaceae, and it shows. In the early days of spring the tree is absolutely covered in beautiful white and pinkish flowers, and by late spring it is loaded down with clusters of red fruit. The tree canopy itself has a naturally nice shape — a refined small tree that makes a striking specimen in the landscape. With age they can reach 25-30 feet. Occasional thorns on the stems are a reminder that you’re looking at a true hawthorn, Crataegus, a genus known for toughness and thorns.
Built for Florida’s extremes
One of Mayhaw’s most remarkable traits is its ability to grow in flooded plains without problem. Poorly drained sites that would severely limit most trees are no obstacle for this species — it can grow with its roots in seasonally standing water and still thrive. What makes it even more impressive is that it handles drought just as capably, showcasing a resilience that reflects its deep roots as a Florida native. It tolerates full sun to part shade and adapts to a wide range of soils. I have seen Mayhaws planted by enthusiasts in Tampa, in full sun in sandy soil with no organic content, and they were thriving. That kind of adaptability makes it an exceptional choice for bioswales, rain gardens, and any low spot in the landscape where options are limited.
High ecological value
My interest in Florida’s native haws was sparked by attending a talk by the renowned Florida horticulturist and author Craig Huegel — author of Native Plant Landscaping for Florida Wildlife and many other books on Florida natives. He spoke passionately about how the group of native haws, the Florida Crataegus species, are among the very best plants for ecological gardening. He personally favors the Littlehip Haw (Crataegus spathulata) as the absolute best for birds and pollinators, saying that few plants can come close to bringing an abundance of migratory birds into your yard looking for its small and numerous fruit.
Apple Haw is decent for larger birds and offers more for human foraging with the much larger fruit. Both hawthorns have tight canopy and occasional thorns making them favored shelter for songbirds and prime bird nesting habitat. As a native plant it is a prime host plant for some absolutely beautiful moths and butterflies. Including the the beautiful Hummingbird Clearwing moth (Hemaris thysbe) and the Blinded Sphinx moth (Paonias excaecata) according to the Florida Native Plant Society, and Gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus), Red-spotted purple (Limenitis arthemis astyanax), and the Viceroy (Limenitis archippus) butterflies according to the North Carolina Extension Plant Toolbox. With the early and abundant flowers hawthorns are also prime early forage for many native bees. All around, it is a great plant for wildlife and local ecology.
“Few native trees are this beautiful and useful in a landscape.” — Craig Huegel, speaking on Florida’s native haws
A flavor of the South
Mayhaws look like a cross between a crabapple and a cranberry, with a sweet and tart flavor and floral notes. Wild versions usually have small fruit (1/2″ in diameter), while selected cultivars on grafted trees can be four times larger, around an inch across. They are largely grown in north Florida and across the true South, but they don’t need chill hours like a peach or plum — they can thrive in south Florida where planted and given reasonable establishment care. Criag Huegal has planted many of the north Florida Haws in zone 10B Pinellas County, and they have thrived over decades at places like the Pinellas County Extension Office. In nature, Mayhaws prefer moist soils under hardwood trees providing dappled shade but are remarkably adaptable.
Historically, indigenous people and early settlers looked to May — when the Mayhaws were ripening — as a prime time to harvest this wild abundance. Families would gather the fruit from riverbanks and swamp edges, creating stockpiles of jams, jellies, syrup, and wine to last through the year. Many people say Mayhaw jelly is some of the best in the world. Louisiana has designated the Mayhaw its official state fruit tree and Mayhaw jelly as a state jelly — a recognition of just how deeply rooted this fruit is in Southern culture. Colquitt, Georgia calls itself the Mayhaw Capital of the World and has hosted the National Mayhaw Festival for the last forty years.
In our gardens
We have planted five Mayhaws across our demonstration gardens at Twin Lakes Park in Sarasota, including along our bioswale — a fitting spot for a tree that handles wet conditions with ease. We went with a mix of three wild seed-started trees and two improved grafted cultivars that can produce fruit three to four times larger than wild ones. We have also started collecting and planting the other native Hawthorns to trial. These trees will attract birds, support pollinators, and — hopefully — make some world-class Mayhaw jelly in the future.
This is a fruit and a tree with traits that everyone can get behind: beautiful ornamental value from its flowers and shape, outstanding ecological value as a Florida native, an important ethnobotanical history that makes it useful to this day. If you love the flavor and love what a plant can do for the landscape around it, the Mayhaw is an all-around underplanted tree for our region of the Suncoast.
Resources
- UF/IFAS Mayhaw Page: https://gardeningsolutions.ifas.ufl.edu/mastergardener/resources/plantid/fruits-and-nuts/mayhaw/
- Florida Native Plant Society Mayhaw Page: https://www.fnps.org/plant/crataegus-aestivalis#gsc.tab=0
- Did you know you can grow: Mayhaw – University of Georgia Page: https://fieldreport.caes.uga.edu/features/did-you-know-you-can-grow-mayhaw/
- Florida Hawthorns Are Hidden Treasures by Craig Huegel: https://fnpsblog.blogspot.com/2011/04/florida-hathorns-are-hidden-treasures.html
- North Carolina Extension Mayhaw Page: https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/crataegus-aestivalis/
- USF Plant Atlas Mayhaw Page: https://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu/plant/species/3116
- The Ancient Mayhaw Is Making a Comeback Here – Fernandina Observer: https://www.fernandinaobserver.org/stories/the-ancient-mayhaw-is-making-a-comeback-here,15912
During the preparation of this work, the author used AI to help build and refine the blog post. After using this tool/service, the author reviewed and edited the content, and takes full responsibility for the content of the publication.
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