The Blackthorn

This bush is also known as tarka, terka, or cierń (‘thorn’). It is a very useful shrub that can grow from 2 up to 3 meters. The young shoots are delicate, covered with pubescence, while  the older ones are smooth, brown in colour, turning dark violet with time passing. The leaves are elliptic. The Blackthorn has long and hard thorns. In April the shrub blooms in tiny white flowers with yellow or red stamens. It is a melliferous plant that bears fruit from September till October. The fruit are rather small, round and navy blue in colour. They are tart in taste, and can be eaten only after the first slight frost. They were used for making preserves and producing wine and liqueur as well as for dyeing  fabric. The blackthorn grows along the old balks and village road bluffs. The bushes were forming natural borders between the properties and served as natural barriers. These dense, thorny bushes were perfect protection against wild animals, therefore farmers used them as a sort of a natural fence.