Azarole

Shrub or tree up to ca. 4 (-10) m tall. Twigs more or less lanate or lanate-tomentose. Thorns up to ca. 8 cm long, more or less stout. Buds 2–3 (-4.2) mm long, 2–3 (-4.8) mm in diameter. Leaf blades more or less coriaceous, more or less lustrous dark green and appressed-pubescent above, pale or greyish-green and glabrous or appressed pubescent beneath, attenuate, cuneate or rounded at base, lobes obtuse, acute or cuspidate, margin entire or serrate with more or less coarse teeth; basal pair of veins divergent, straight or convergent. Subterminal leaf blades of flowering shoots (10-) 15–30 (-80) × (7-) 10–25 (-70) mm, lobes 1–2 (-4) pairs, rarely absent, basal lobes sometimes extending to midrib, each lobe entire or with (1-) 2–3 (-6) teeth in distal half, lobe length 0.5–1 (-3) times to width; petiole (2-) 4–6 (-17) mm; stipules rarely absent or 3–5 (-10) × 0.5–1 (-3) mm, entire or with 1–3 teeth. Subterminal leaf blades of short shoots (10-) 15–30 (-70) × (10-) 15–25 (-50) mm, lobes 1–2 (-4) pairs, basal pair extending to midrib, basal lobe entire or with 3 (-6) teeth in the upper half; petiole (2-) 4–8 (-28) mm long; stipules mostly undeveloped or 2–3 (-5) × 0.5–1 mm. Leaf blades of elongate shoots (15-) 20–35 (-80) × 15–25 (-70) mm, lobes 1–3 (-4) pairs, basal pair entire or 1–4 (-8) teeth at upper half; petiole 2–10 (-20) mm; stipules 4–10 (-25) × (0-) 3–5 mm, with 3–5 (-10) teeth. Inflorescence (10-) 15–20 (-45) × 15–20 (-60) mm long, corymbose, (5-) 10–20 (-25) flowered, more or less lanate or lanate-tomentose; pedicels 2–5 (-10) mm; bracts 1–4 × 0.2–0.9 mm, caducous, linear or lanceolate, margin entire or denticulate with 1–6 teeth. Flowers (5-) 10–15 mm in diameter. Hypanthium 3–6 × 3–6 mm; sepals 1.2–3.5 × 1.6–3.9 mm, usually broadly triangular, margin entire, apex more or less acute; petals 3–7 × 4–7 mm; stamens 15–20 (-22), anthers purple; styles (1-) 2–3 (4). Fruit (6-) 8–12 (-35) mm, depressed-globose, globose or slightly pyriform, yellowish-green or orange, often tinged with red, when dried, often becoming dark red; the immature fruit crowned by the persistent erect or spreading sepals, at maturity sepals re-curved; pyrenes (4-) 5–7 × 6–8 (-20) mm, dorsally sulcate, ventrally smooth, hypostyle pilose.

Crataegus azarolus is a species of hawthorn known by the common names azarole, azerole, and Mediterranean medlar. It is native to the Mediterranean Basin and is a common plant there, growing on sites comparable to those the European common hawthorn grows on. In the Arab countries it is the most common hawthorn species. When growing in the wild, the azerole bears plentiful crops of haw fruits, which are similar to the haws of the European common hawthorn, but more plump.

C. azarolus is often divided into subspecies or varieties, for example Christensen in his monograph uses four varieties:

C. azarolus var. azarolus has orange fruit. C. azarolus var. aronia L., has yellowish fruit often with some red tinges C. azarolus var. chlorocarpa (Moris) K.I.Chr. has yellowish fruit C. azarolus var. pontica (K.Koch) K.I.Chr. has yellowish or orange fruit

C. azarolus has been used historically for a number of medicinal purposes.