THE BLACKTHORN. 481 
The fruit is the well-known Sloe, which, though 
intensely sour to the taste, bears, on its ground 
of black, a rich purple bloom, which gives great 
beauty to the Tree in autumn. Though called 
Blackthorn, probably on account of the blackness 
of its bark and the sombreness of its foliage, there 
is no relationship between this Tree and the species 
last described—Prunus spinosa, as its scientific 
name implies, being allied to the Plum family. 
The leaves of the Sloe have been sometimes used 
to adulterate tea, and the wood, though hard and 
susceptible of polish, is of little value except for 
tool handles and walking-sticks. Though ordi- 
narily seen in the form of a shrub, the Blackthorn 
will sometimes attain a height of thirty feet. Its 
roots spread considerably, and throw up suckers 
at intervals, which form a dense thicket of under- 
wood, that, adds much to the wildness of our 
woodlands. It can be easily propagated in almost 
any soil either by seed or by means of its nume- 
rous suckers, and can thus be made to add to 
cultivated woodland the same wildness—where 
such a feature is desired—as it lends to its 
natural habitats. 
Ff 2 
