Blackthorn or Prunus Spinosa is often used as one of the mainstays of Stewardship Hedgerows especially for stock-proof situations. It is a small deciduous tree or shrub native to the UK and most parts of Europe from the family Rosaceae and is a strong densely growing plant with stems covered with smooth dark brown bark and the twigs which form straight side shoot on the plant then develop into long thorns.
The growth nature of Blackthorn therefore makes it ideal for stock-proofing either as a single species or as part of a Stewardship mix. The blossom which is one of the earliest to appear in March and April as pretty, white flowers on short stalks is an important source of pollen and nectar for bees. Birds also take advantage of the dense nature of Blackthorn to nest in safety in spring and feed on the various caterpillars to be found on the foliage. The blossom will then develop into the recognisable blue-black sloe berries which could be harvested for wine making or flavouring gin.
Blackthorn planted as part of a Stewardship scheme would normally be spaced in a double or sometimes even a triple row at between 5-7 plants per metre, once established, growing at a rate of about 30cm per year, not dissimilar to the rate at which other Stewardship plants grow.
The pre-preparation of the ground to be planted would mean weed killing the area through the summer and usually if planting several hundred Blackthorn to save time a farmer will slit plant, this entails making a slit in the ground with a spade, the Blackthorn transplant is then inserted into the ground and the slit closed with the heel of the foot and firmed in. If rabbits and hares are a problem, then wrapping the transplant with a protective spiral guard is a must to limit the number destroyed by the animals.
A friendly heads up about our stewardship Blackthorn hedging products……
Products in our Farm Stewardship Hedging section are priced on a wholesale basis for larger scale farm and professional users and so in the spirit of wholesale, a minimum order value of £250 (excluding VAT) applies. We still accept orders below this value, but we must point out that they will automatically attract a £49 (excluding VAT) delivery charge to cover our packing, administration and delivery costs fully on these low margin products.
If your order is significantly under £250 it would almost certainly be more economical for you (after the delivery cost has been applied) to order from our main Blackthorn hedging page where the plants may cost a little more but delivery is free on orders over £60 (ex VAT).
Delivery leadtimes update – April 2025
Spring is our busiest time of year and we are working through orders as fast as we can to get your plants delivered. To give you an accurate idea of when your order will arrive, these are the current leadtimes (delivery is 1-2 days after despatch):
– Orders containing only bare roots – despatch within 5 working days.
– Orders containing only root balls, or root balls and bare roots – despatch within 10 working days.
– All orders containing potted plants – despatch within 14 working days.
Delivery is free for most orders above our free delivery thresholds, these are displayed above our prices in the product listings and summarized below. If you don’t need that many plants it’s not a problem, you can choose to pay our delivery charge and only order what you need.
Delivery is convenient – no signature is required so you don’t need to wait in, we will leave your parcel in the safe place that you nominate.
Delivery is fast – because we pick orders daily from our own growing beds your plants only travel the small hop to our packing shed before being sent to you, they are usually delivered within 5-7 working days.
Delivery is reliable – we have been selling and delivering Hedging Plants to our customers nationwide since 1992. We have a lot of experience in packing them safely and only use tried and tested delivery partners.
Smaller Plants (Parcel Delivery)
| Location | Order Value | Price |
| UK Mainland excluding Highlands | Up to £90 | £15.00 |
| UK Mainland excluding Highlands | Over £90 | Free |
| Scottish Highlands and Isle of Wight | All orders | £24.00 |
Heavy Plants (Pallet Delivery)
| Location | Order Value | Price |
| UK Mainland excluding Highlands | Up to £420 | £72.00 |
| UK Mainland excluding Highlands | Over £420 | Free |
| Scottish Highlands and Isle of Wight | All orders | £72.00 |
Tall Plants 2.5m+ (Specialist Delivery)
| Location | Order Value | Price |
| UK Mainland excluding Highlands | Under £1800 | Please call us |
| UK Mainland excluding Highlands | Over £1800 | Free |
| Scottish Highlands and Isle of Wight | All orders | Not available |
Exceptions to our delivery charges are Scottish Highland and Isle of Wight delivery areas where we need to charge a little extra to cover the cost of deliveries to these outlying areas. We don’t currently delivery to other offshore addresses including Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland.
Tall plants over 2.5 metres have to be delivered by our own specialised transport, our delivery area is limited to mainland England and Wales only.
Please note there is a minimum order value of £50 for orders containing smaller plants and £250 for orders containing heavier plants
Complete delivery information can be viewed on our Delivery Information page
