Buckthorn - Rhamnus cathartica
Shrub or small tree to 6 metres. Old branches ending in a spine tip. Leaves oval, opposite or clustered, long stalked and toothed. Flowers greenish 3 to 4 mm in dense clusters arising from the older branches or solitary. The male and female flowers on separate plants. Berries black when ripe.
Woodland scrub and hedgerows.
May and June.
Deciduous.
Fairly frequent in England but much less so in Scotland and Wales.
Fairly frequent in Leicestershire and Rutland. In the 1979 Flora survey of Leicestershire it was found in 233 of the 617 tetrads.
David Nicholls
Watermead Country Park
27 September 2013
martindgrimes
Egleton NR
25 May 2017
Graham Calow
Wykin
07 June 2015
in flower Hedge near Back Brook on Fosse Sapcote SP 4989 9244 (taken 11.7.2008).JPG)
Graham Calow
Sapcote
11 July 2006
In fruit - unripe
David Nicholls
Cossington
11 October 2011
Alan Semper
Harby Nature Reserve
24 September 2016
 Hedge near Back Brook on Fosse Sapcote SP 4989 9244 (taken 11.7.2008).JPG)
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Species profile
- Common names
- Buckthorn
- Species group:
- Trees, Shrubs & Climbers
- Kingdom:
- Plantae
- Order:
- Rosales
- Family:
- Rhamnaceae
- Records on NatureSpot:
- 88
- First record:
- 07/06/2006 (Calow, Graham)
- Last record:
- 12/10/2025 (Nicholas Humphreys)
Total records by month
% of records within its species group
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The latest images and records displayed below include those awaiting verification checks so we cannot guarantee that every identification is correct. Once accepted, the record displays a green tick.
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Latest images
Latest records
martindgrimes
Ryhall Heath
28 May 2018 Hedge near Back Brook on Fosse Sapcote SP 4989 9244 (taken 7.6.2006).JPG)
Graham Calow
Sapcote
07 June 2006
In flower
stepgray4
Kettton Quarry NR
15 August 2021
martindgrimes
Ryhall Heath
31 August 2020
David Nicholls
Fosse Meadows
21 May 2014
Graham Calow
Sharnford, Fosse Meadows
26 July 2020
stepgray4
Kettton Quarry NR
15 August 2021
martindgrimes
Clipsham Park Wood
30 August 2020 Hedge near Back Brook on Fosse Sapcote SP 4989 9244 (taken 10.9.2006).JPG)
Graham Calow
Sapcote
10 September 2006
In fruit - ripe
David Nicholls
Cossington
11 October 2011
Graham Calow
Leire, Jubilee Walk dismantled railway
19 October 2020
egaten
Burbage Common
12 November 2020
David Nicholls
Cossington
11 October 2011
 Hedge near Back Brook on Fosse Sapcote SP 4989 9244 (taken 7.6.2006).JPG)
 Hedge near Back Brook on Fosse Sapcote SP 4989 9244 (taken 10.9.2006).JPG)
Stigmella catharticella
The larva of the moth Stigmella catharticella mines the leaves of Buckthorn, producing a long straight slender gallery, turning into a series of 'S' turns. Frass may be either dispersed or coiled.
Crown Rust
Puccinia coronata is a rust fungus which affects Buckthorn. The orange aecia cause galls on the leaf blade and petioles, which may cause them to become twisted and distorted.
Aequsomatus annulatus
The gall mite Aequsomatus annulatus causes galls to form on the leaves of Buckthorn. An erineum is visible between the veins on the underside of the leaf, the blade becomes thickened and sometimes hairy on the upperside.
Jumping Plant Louse
The Jumping Plant Louse, Trichochermes walkeri, causes the leaf margin to curl and a gall to be formed on the leaves of Buckthorn. The gall is more likely to be seen than the adult plant louse.