HoneyHQ

Buckthorn

Rhamnus catharticaRhamnaceaeShrub

A thorny hedgerow shrub of chalk country, dioecious and inconspicuously flowered, and one of the two food plants of the brimstone butterfly. It flowers in May and June and offers small accessible flowers that short-tongued bees work steadily, and it is a component of the gesho used to bitter Ethiopian honey wine.

Where not to plant it

Seriously invasive across the northeastern and midwestern United States and Canada, where it forms dense understorey thickets, alters soil nitrogen and hosts soybean aphid. It is banned in several states.

Caution

The berries are strongly purgative — hence the species name — and are not edible.

Value to bees

Nectar
Moderate
Pollen
Moderate
As a honey crop
Not a honey source
Which bees, and why
Small open flowers accessible to short-tongued bees. Male and female flowers are on separate plants, so both are needed for berries — and the berries feed birds through autumn and winter.
Worth knowing
A modest but highly accessible nectar source over several weeks.

Flowering

In flower
May to June (northern hemisphere)

A late-spring flow.

Growing it

Conditions
Sun or part shade on chalk and limestone, and tolerant of dry and poor ground.
Size
3-6 m tall.
Native range
Europe, North Africa and western Asia, on chalk and limestone scrub and hedgerow. Seriously invasive in North America.
Suits
Hedgerow, Large gardens
  • Plant male and female together if berries are wanted.
  • One of only two larval food plants for the brimstone butterfly, which is a good reason to include it in a hedge.
  • Do not plant in North America, where it is a serious invasive.

What it looks like

A spiny shrub with oval leaves in near-opposite pairs and clusters of tiny four-petalled greenish flowers, followed by black berries on female plants.

Sources

  • Field Guide to the Bees of Great Britain and Ireland — Bloomsbury (2015) · Field guide
  • HoneyHQ editorial synthesis — HEKNO Ltd · HoneyHQ synthesis

How sources are selected and weighted is set out in the sources and evidence policy.

Guides covering this plant

Tools for planning planting

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