Thorny-Olive (Elaeagnus pungens)

Plantae>Magnoliophyta>Magnoliopsida>Rhamnales>Elaeagnaceae>Elaeagnus pungens Thunb.

An evergreen large shrub or small tree from Japan with thick, coriaceous leaves and spiny twigs. A little less invasive, at present, than the noxious weed Autumn-Olive (E. umbellata). Blooms in the fall and fruit ripens in spring, unlike Autumn-Olive, which blooms in spring and fruits in the fall.

The leaf undersides are scurfy, with rusty-brown and silvery scales.
Bark detail.

More information:
Exotic Pest Plants of Southeastern Forests
Floridata

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Revised 10/18/05 cwcook@duke.edu

All photographs and text ©2005 by Will Cook unless otherwise indicated.