Common Buckthorn

Profile

Family

Rhamnaceae

Habit

Shrub

Height

6 m

Spread

3 m

Growth

slow

Lifespan

100 years

First yield

after 6 years

Hardiness

zone 3–7

Shade tolerance

partial shade

Soil

Sand, Silt, Loam, Clay

Soil moisture

very dry – very moist

pH

5.5 – 8.5

Synonyms

Rhamnus catharticus, Echter Kreuzdorn, Gemeiner Kreuzdorn, Kreuzbeere, Färberbeere, Hirschdorn

Flowering & harvest

Times apply to the northern hemisphere in a temperate climate and shift with altitude and cultivar.

Uses

Growing

Common buckthorn wants full sun to partial shade on dry, poor, lime-rich soil and will not tolerate waterlogging. It grows slowly, is fully hardy and extremely undemanding. Propagation is from seed, which needs several months of cold stratification. It takes pruning well as a hedge – wear gloves because of the thorns. Fruit set requires both a male and a female shrub.

Value for wildlife

The principal larval food plant of the brimstone butterfly (Gonepteryx rhamni), whose specific epithet refers directly to buckthorn. The flowers are a good nectar source for bees, the berries are eaten and dispersed by thrushes and other birds, and the thorny thicket offers birds sheltered nesting sites.

Notable

Easily confused with alder buckthorn (Frangula alnus): common buckthorn has thorns, opposite leaves with arching veins and prefers dry limestone, while alder buckthorn is thornless, has alternate leaves and prefers acid, moist ground. In North America the species is a problematic invasive and an alternate host of crown rust of oats.

Origin & habitat

Europe east to western Siberia and Asia Minor, north to southern Scandinavia and Britain, south to North Africa. Naturalised and invasive in North America.

Calcareous grassland, dry scrub, woodland edges, hedgerows and open deciduous woodland; a strong lime indicator on dry to fresh, nutrient-poor soils. Avoids waterlogged ground.

Related plants