To me, the blackthorn appears to be rather uninviting and foreboding. It is rather untidy looking and densely branched with many spines. It is a deciduous tree with dark blackish/brown bark. Its branches spread and terminate in spiny twigs. Its leaves are oval, pointed at the tip with toothed margins growing up to 4.5cm long on a 1cm petiole. Its upper surface is a smooth dull green with prominent veins on the lower surface. It produces white flowers, mostly solitary, opening before the leaves creating quite an unusual appearance with white flowers on a dark frame. The flowers produce in such vast numbers that in early spring blackthorns appear to be completely white. It is widespread and common in Europe except from the far North. It is common in hedgerows at it forms a thick impenetrable barrier. Blackthorn leaves are the food source for a large number of moth larvae and is also an important source of food for bees in the spring.
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