Sloes?

Pain in the ...
We have blackthorn hedges on three sides (mixed with loads of other self-sown natives) and they do run like mad straight into the borders, despite having a mown path between! But we get lots & lots of sloes and the flowers are pretty much the first of spring so lovely to see.
   
Interestingly, sloes are one of the few wild foods that the French don't seem to forage for, and our arch-forager neighbour, who is also a chef, didin't know what they were!