Berries and thorns covered in ice make this plant look even more ominous. I call it evil because this tree – European Buckthorn – has invaded our natural areas and is really hard to stop. This was taken at the Westminster Ponds Environmentally Significant Area that is sadly, choked with Buckthorn.
© Sheila Creighton 2018
Imagery of Light 
Sigh…..introduced plants cause enormous issues don’t they. Usually it’s the humans to blame in the first instance, then birds help out with the tasty berries. The African buckthorn has caused problems over here.
Here’s a suggestion – get politicians to grub them out😁
Yeah, the birds love the berries.
At my work we have had ‘buckthorn busting’ events – having one for the politicians is a great idea, E!
It is so out of control – I find them everywhere in my yard all the time and they are hard to get rid of. We even lend out large ‘wrenches’ to pull them out with roots.
It’s interesting that your buckthorn’s an invasive. My first trip to the east Texas woods, I found a tree/shrub I couldn’t identify for the life of me. Eventually, I found some knowledgeable plant people who looked at a photo and said, in unison, “Carolina buckthorn.” The placement of its leaves and berries look much like yours but it’s native to the southeastern U.S. I haven’t yet figured out why it’s called buckthorn, since it doesn’t have any thorns.
It is too bad cause it’s a food source for birds but it spreads like crazy.
It may be evil, but that’s a lovely shot!
Bad news when invasive species get out of hand! Makes me think of the Rosebay Willow that stain the land here in summer… wonder if it was a planned swap?
Yeah it’s out of control in parts. Education is a huge piece of the solution.