Blackthorn
Prunus spinosa
ShrubSecondary
Production
A tough, thorny pioneer hedge shrub that shelters wildlife, blocks wind and stock, and hands you sloes each autumn — just keep its suckering spread in check.
Tolerances & traits
- Strata
- Shrub
- Lifecycle
- Secondary
- Soil preference
- Loam, Clay
- Soil pH range
- 5.5 – 8
- Min. temperature
- -30°C
- Min. rainfall
- 450 mm/year
- Wind tolerance
- High
- Frost tolerance
- High
- Growth rate
- Medium
- Irrigation needed
- Low
How to manage it
Lay or coppice as a stock-proof hedge; harvest sloes after first frost softens them.
Watch out for
Vicious thorns can cause festering wounds; suckers aggressively and can overrun hedgerows and field edges if not contained.
Design your line to see how your land fits Blackthorn.
Start designing your line →Related species