Sloe of Prunus Spinosa, h of cm 30-50

Family: Rose family (Rosaceae)
Botanical name: Sloe prickly (sloe) (Prunus spinosa L.)
Pharmaceutical: sloe flowers - Pruni spinosae flos (earlier: Flores Pruni spinosae), sloe fruits - Pruni spinosae fructus (earlier: Fructus Pruni spinosae), sloe leaves - Pruni spinosae folium (earlier: Folia Pruni spinosae)
Generic name: treats the sort Plum (Prunus)
National names: goat berry, oat plum, acid plum, black prickle, sloe, teren (ukr.), tarnina, tarki (polsk.)
In ancient manuscripts: in old legends the blackthorn is called "the punishing scourge" or "conflict".

Planet: Mars, Saturn
Zodiac sign: Scorpion, Twins
Elements: Water
Language of flowers: "Why contempt?", "Keep the promise!", beauty and longevity.
Main properties: protection, destiny, good luck.

Description:
The sloe or blackthorn is bush or small tree 1,5-3 high (big types to 4-8) meter with numerous prickly branches. Branches grow horizontally and come to an end with sharp thick thorn. The young branches trimmed.
Leaves have the elliptic or obovate form. The young leaves trimmed become dark green, with opaque outflow, leathery with age.
The blackthorn begins to blossom in April-May. Flowers small, white color, single or on two, on short peduncules, five-petal. Are dismissed before leaves, cover all branches and have smell of bitter almond.
The sloe from 2-3-year age fructifies. Fruits - one-stone fruit, generally have rounded shape, small (10-15 mm in the diameter), black-blue color with bloom. The pulp is green. Stones from pulp do not separate. Fruits ripen in August-September and keep on tree all winter till spring. To taste fruits tart and acid, ripen late, but the plant fructifies annually and plentifully. After the first frosts tartness decreases, and fruits become more or less edible.
Blackthorn wood very strong. Bark brown or dark red.
Roots numerous and powerful.
The plant morozo-is also drought-resistant, photophilously.

Places of growth:
The wild blackthorn grows in Asia Minor, Western Europe, the Mediterranean, the European part of Russia, in the Caucasus and in Western Siberia.
Grows in ravines, along roads, about the rivers, on forest edges.

The used parts:
Blackthorn in the medicinal purposes use all: flowers, leaves, fruits, roots, bark, upper pigmented layer of bark.

Flowers prepare in the period of budding, leaves - after blossoming. Draws prepare in May-June. Dry on air, in shadow, on wind or in well aired room.
Bark is removed from tree in the spring before blossoming, roots dig out in the fall. Dry bark and roots in dryers or furnaces, previously having dried on air.
Fruits of sloe prepare in process of maturing, it is better after the first frosts. Dry on the sun, in furnaces or dryers.
Period of storage of fruits, leaves, flowers - 1 year, bark and roots - more than 3 years.