''Crataegus mexicana'' is a species of hawthorn known by the common names , , and Mexican hawthorn. It is native to the mountains of

Mexico Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guate ...

and parts of Guatemala, and has been introduced in the

Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...

. The fruit of this species is one of the most useful among hawthorns. ''Crataegus pubescens'' Steud. is a nomenclaturally illegitimate name (for ''Crataegus gracilior'' J.B.PhippsPhipps JB (1997) Monograph of Northern Mexican ''Crataegus'' (Rosaceae, subfam. Maloideae). Botanical Research Institute of Texas, Fort Worth, Texas, U.S.A.) that is commonly misapplied to this species.

Etymology

, the Mexican name for this fruit, comes from the

Nahuatl Nahuatl (; ), Aztec, or Mexicano is a language or, by some definitions, a group of languages of the Uto-Aztecan language family. Varieties of Nahuatl are spoken by about Nahua peoples, most of whom live mainly in Central Mexico and have small ...

word which means 'stone fruit'. The alternative (and ambiguous) name means 'little apple' in Spanish. The generic name, '' Crataegus'', is derived from a Latinized Greek compound word literally meaning 'strong sharp,' in reference to the strong wood, and thorny

habitus Habitus may refer to: * Habitus (biology), a term commonly used in biology as being less ambiguous than "habit" * Habitus (sociology), embodied dispositions or tendencies that organize how people perceive and respond to the world around them * ' ...

of several species.

Description

The plant is a large shrub or small

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...

growing to 5–10 m tall, with a dense crown. The leaves are semi-

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has foliage that remains green and functional through more than one growing season. This also pertains to plants that retain their foliage only in warm climates, and contrasts with deciduous plants, which ...

, oval to diamond-shaped, 4–8 cm long, with a serrated margin. The

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism ...

s are off-white, 2 cm diameter. The

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in partic ...

is a globose to oblong orange-red

pome In botany, a pome is a type of fruit produced by flowering plants in the subtribe Malinae of the family Rosaceae. Well-known pomes include the apple, pear, and quince. Etymology The word ''pome'' entered English in the late 14th century, an ...

2 cm long and 1.5 cm diameter, ripening in late winter only shortly before the flowers of the following year.

Uses

The fruit is eaten in Mexico cooked, raw, or canned. It resembles a crabapple, but it has three or sometimes more brown hard stones in the center. It is a main ingredient used in '' ponche'', the traditional Mexican hot fruit punch that is served at Christmas time and on New Year's Eve. On

Day of the Dead The Day of the Dead ( es, Día de Muertos or ''Día de los Muertos'') is a holiday traditionally celebrated on November 1 and 2, though other days, such as October 31 or November 6, may be included depending on the locality. It is widely obser ...

tejocote fruit as well as candy prepared from them are used as offerings to the dead, and rosaries made of the fruit are part of altar decorations. A mixture of tejocote paste, sugar, and chili powder produces a popular Mexican candy called , because it resembles a tiny train rail. Due to its high

pectin Pectin ( grc, πηκτικός ': "congealed" and "curdled") is a heteropolysaccharide, a structural acid contained in the primary lamella, in the middle lamella, and in the cell walls of terrestrial plants. The principal, chemical component o ...

content, the fruit is processed to extract pectin for food, cosmetic, pharmaceutical and textile uses. Other uses include food for livestock (for which the leaves and fruits are used) and traditional medicinal uses; a Mexican hawthorn root infusion is used as a

diuretic A diuretic () is any substance that promotes diuresis, the increased production of urine. This includes forced diuresis. A diuretic tablet is sometimes colloquially called a water tablet. There are several categories of diuretics. All diuretics in ...

and as a remedy for

diarrhea Diarrhea, also spelled diarrhoea, is the condition of having at least three loose, liquid, or watery bowel movements each day. It often lasts for a few days and can result in dehydration due to fluid loss. Signs of dehydration often begin ...

, and fruit-based preparations are a remedy for coughing and several heart conditions. The Mexican hawthorn tree's wood is hard and compact, it is useful for making tool handles as well as for firewood.Conabio (Mexico) species profile
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Importing

It is legal to import tejocote into the U.S. from Mexico as of 2015.

Botanical nomenclature

The name ''C. pubescens'' Steud., published in 1840, is a better-known name for this species, but is illegitimate under the

International Code of Botanical Nomenclature The ''International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants'' (ICN) is the set of rules and recommendations dealing with the formal botanical names that are given to plants, fungi and a few other groups of organisms, all those "trad ...

. It is a later

homonym In linguistics, homonyms are words which are homographs (words that share the same spelling, regardless of pronunciation), or homophones (equivocal words, that share the same pronunciation, regardless of spelling), or both. Using this definition, ...

of ''C. pubescens'' C.Presl which was published in 1826 as the name of a species from

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

References

USDA Plants Profile
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2669488 mexicana Trees of Chiapas Trees of Guatemala Tropical fruit Taxa named by Alphonse Pyramus de Candolle Taxa named by Martín Sessé y Lacasta Taxa named by José Mariano Mociño