Prunus spinosa Britain, and in Germany and other central European countries. Sloes can also be made into jam, chutney, and used in fruit pies. Sloes preserved in vinegar are similar in taste to Japanese "umeboshi". The juice of the fruits dyes linen a reddish colour that washes out to a durable pale blue. Blackthorn makes an excellent fire wood that burns slowly with a good heat and little smoke. The wood takes a fine polish and is used for tool handles and canes. Straight blackthorn stems have traditionally been made into walking sticks or clubs (known in Ireland as a shillelagh). In
Prunus × incam Prunus × incam Prunus × incam, sometimes called the Okamé cherry, although that name rightly belongs to its Okamé cultivar, is a hybrid species of flowering cherry, the result of a cross between "Prunus incisa" (Fuji cherry) and "Prunus campanulata" (Taiwan or bellflower cherry). It is a small tree, reaching 8m, with silver bark and showy pink flowers. Its leaves are obovate or oblanceolate, 47 to 70mm long and 22 to 31mm wide. Its fall foliage is an attractive bronze-orangish-red. Due to its hybrid nature, fruit are rarely produced even though it produces large amounts of pollen, and so it