Blackthorn: leaf
Blackthorn
Cherry plum: leafHenry Miller, CC BY 4.0
Cherry plum
Lookalikes

Blackthorn or cherry plum?

Also white-flowered in early spring.

The quickest check

The quickest check is the flower and its stalk. Blackthorn: about 15 mm, on a short stalk, on bare wood. Cherry plum: about 2 cm, on a long stalk, often with leaves. No flowers on the tree? Check the this year's shoots.

At a glance

Look atBlackthornCherry plum
Flower and its stalkAbout 15 mm, on a short stalk, on bare woodAbout 2 cm, on a long stalk, often with leaves
This year's shootsGleaming purple, many ending in a spineThin and shiny green, spines on some plants only
FruitDusty blue sloe, about 15 mmRound plum, up to 4 cm, yellow or red

Three ways to tell them apart

Flower and its stalkFlowers
Blackthorn: flower and its stalkVirn Stothers, CC BY 4.0
BlackthornAbout 15 mm, on a short stalk, on bare wood
Cherry plum: flower and its stalkDaniel Cahen, CC BY 4.0
Cherry plumAbout 2 cm, on a long stalk, often with leaves
This year's shootsTwigs and buds
Blackthorn: this year's shootsDaniel Cahen, CC BY 4.0
BlackthornGleaming purple, many ending in a spine
Cherry plum: this year's shootsDaniel Cahen, CC BY 4.0
Cherry plumThin and shiny green, spines on some plants only
FruitSloes
Blackthorn: fruitNicola Crockford, CC BY 4.0
BlackthornDusty blue sloe, about 15 mm
Cherry plum: fruitPaul Cook, CC BY 4.0
Cherry plumRound plum, up to 4 cm, yellow or red
Think you can tell them apart now? Try the tree quiz: real photographs, and what gives each tree away.Take the quiz

The two trees

Blackthorn

Prunus spinosa

Blackthorn is a dense shrub with stiff, thorny branches. Its white flowers open on the bare, almost black stems in March, and in autumn it carries dusty blue sloes.

How to identify blackthorn →

Cherry plum

Prunus cerasifera

Cherry plum is a small, bushy tree that fills with white blossom from February, as its first leaves start to open. Its thin young shoots are shiny green.

How to identify cherry plum →

Their other lookalikes

BlackthornHawthornBlackthorn or hawthorn?Quickest check: the flowers and leaves, and whenBlackthornSpindleBlackthorn or spindle?Quickest check: the top of a leafBlackthornWild cherryBlackthorn or wild cherry?Quickest check: how the flowers sitBlackthornCrab appleBlackthorn or crab apple?Quickest check: when it flowersCherry plumPurple-leaved plumCherry plum or purple-leaved plum?Quickest check: the colour of a leafCherry plumWild cherryCherry plum or wild cherry?Quickest check: how the flowers are held
In the app

See them side by side in Treely

  • Both trees, part by partLeaves, bark, buds, flowers and fruit, photographed through the year
  • Every lookalike side by sideThe checks that settle it, for every pair people mix up
  • A short round each dayUntil you can tell them apart at a glance
  • The full GuideBoth trees written up in full, with where to find them
App StoreGoogle Play

Free to download.

Every fact on this page is checked against the Collins Tree Guide, last in November 2026. Spotted something that looks wrong in front of a real tree? Tell us. How we check.

Photographs: steve_mcwilliam (CC0), Henry Miller (CC BY 4.0), Virn Stothers (CC BY 4.0), Daniel Cahen (CC BY 4.0), Nicola Crockford (CC BY 4.0), Paul Cook (CC BY 4.0). With thanks to everyone who shares their photographs on iNaturalist and Wikimedia Commons.