A pretty tree that is often planted in hedgerows is the cherry plum. It is especially attractive just now when the bright green leaves and the pure white flowers are opening together. It is sometimes mistaken for blackthorn, but blackthorn is not quite ready to bloom yet, and when it does the snowy flowers will open well before the leaves. Cherry plum comes from the Balkans and is sometimes called Myrobalan plum. It bears small red fruit with a pleasant taste but does not bear it very often. Hawthorn bushes in the hedges are also on the point of coming into leaf. At the tip of the buds one can see pale points where the leaves are just showing through.These will soon become little green whisks. Horse chestnut trees will also soon have leaves. The sticky, resinous buds are starting to crack open, and the foliage when it first appears will look like little umbrellas dotted all over the tree.