Crataegus

Common hawthorn is a deciduous, thorny small tree or large shrub native to Europe, northwestern Africa, and western Asia, where it has been used for centuries as stock-proof hedging and valued for its May blossom and autumn haws. In the garden it earns its keep as a tough wildlife powerhouse — a single mature tree can support hundreds of invertebrate species, and the haw crop sustains thrushes and waxwings through winter (Wikipedia). The honest catch is the thorns: they are genuinely sharp (up to 12.5 mm), making pruning painful and placing it off-limits near paths and play areas; the tree is also considered invasive in parts of the Pacific Northwest, Australia, and New Zealand where it outcompetes native scrub.

A dense, rounded, largely spineless native hawthorn of the southeastern United States, grown as a small flowering tree for its showy fragrant white spring flowers and bright red fruits that persist through winter. The Missouri Botanical Garden rates it one of the most disease-resistant hawthorns and a strong urban-tolerant choice. Its haws feed birds and mammals into winter, the flowers draw bees and butterflies, and it is a larval host for several hairstreak butterflies.