Common sea-buckthorn

Description:

Common Sea-buckthorn branches are dense and stiff, and very thorny. The leaves are a distinct pale silvery-green, lanceolate, 3-8 cm long and less than 7 mm broad. It is dioecious, with male and female flowers on separate plants. The brownish male flowers produce wind-distributed pollen. It is a non-legume nitrogen fixer. A high-quality medical oil is produced from the fruit of sea buckthorn and used in the treatment of cardiac disorders. Russian cosmonauts have used its oil for protection against radiation burns in space. Overall the berries have proven to be among the most nutritious fruits known.

Habitat:

Usually found near the coast forming thickets on fixed dunes and sea cliffs. It ranges from Europe, including Britain, from Norway south and east to Spain and Asia to Japan and the Himalayas.

Notes:

These were indeed in dunes close to the sea.