Donal Hickey: Blackthorn blooms as hedgecutting ban kicks in

Birds are getting on with mating and building nests to rear their young — a key reason for the ban on hedgerow cutting and burning of land between March 1 and August 31

The sight of blackthorn flowering in the hedgerows is a heart-lifting sign that the countryside is starting to bloom.

As the legal, if destructive, vegetation-burning season has come to an end, the sight of blackthorn flowering in the hedgerows is a heart-lifting sign that the countryside is starting to bloom.

Many people delight in their first sight of the white, red-speckled flowers. Others are happy for a different reason: they are looking forward to producing homemade wine, and other drinks, from the berries (sloes) blackthorn delivers in autumn.