Prunus spinosa - Blackthorn
The popularity of blackthorn comes from its fruits, the sloes, which are a
vital ingredient of Sloe Gin. (The other ingredients are gin... and time!)
Blackthorn is mainly used as hedging, but individual trees can grown to
five metres or more in favourable situations.
This is one of the first trees to bloom in springtime. Its white
flowers open long before any leaf buds have burst, and they brighten up
hedgerows in what can otherwise be a very dull time of year.
Sloes are very bitter until they have been caught by the
first heavy frost of winter. November is a good time to collect them... if
the birds have not done so already.
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