Drupes Waiting

December 16, 2025

Blackhaw drupes (Viburnum prunifolium) waiting for a hungry bird or two to come along to gobble them up, to disperse those seeds to a new spot far from the parent shrub.

Blackhaw drupes don’t get eaten up quickly but later in the winter after the first frost. Aging and frost helps them become sweeter, becoming like raisins. As these drupes become more tempting, other fruits have already been eaten.

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Published by

Brenda Clements Jones

Brenda is a certified Virginia Master Naturalist, a Habitat Defender for Shenandoah National Park, and a devoted fan of Mother Nature. She lives in a cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Shenandoah National Park, and hikes up to the higher elevations of her mountain often to see what nature is up to. Her constant hiking companion is a camera that captures nature as it unfolds through the seasons. It’s her goal to share the natural world around her through her photographs.