It is messy and parking the car under it is not wise. But in their yard. Elderberries. A few years ago a flock of cedar waxwings completly stripped the tree of its berries in 2 days! How can I tell the difference between a Japanese privet, a white lilac bush or a Hawaiian Mockorange; or whatever it is. Unfortunately dead-heading won’t cause re-blooming to any degree, but you might want to deadhead to reduce seed production. Known as the Waxleaf Privet, it is garlanded with large, 8-inch-long clusters of pure-white flowers in spring. have privet hedge since 2005. Initially we were thinking on planting Golden Privets but have read that they can flare up allergies for folks. Privet is a genus of shrubby, evergreen plants indigenous to Europe and parts of Asia. I do think though that given your location you should consider something native. On the other hand, I don’t want to let nonnative invasives spread if I can help it. If you don’t stay on top of them, they will be a mess all over your yard! You could have any of the ones described here – sorry, can’t be more specific. I think I’m going with the one you mentioned above, the ovalifolium. Most species produce white flowers followed by small black berry-shaped fruit. It is dense and upright, drought and salt spray tolerant, can tolerate being pruned heavily, and grows in a range of soil conditions (except constantly wet). One of them is probably 12 ft tall. The bay berry, Myrica pennsylvanica, is a lot hardier, and just as salt resistant, but shorter and probably slower growing too. Yes, trimming after blooming is always a good idea, and it will stimulate lots of fresh new leaves, keep it dense, and control the size. I understand the best time to do a rejuvenation pruning is late winter/early Spring. It is feasting on Chinese privet, Ligustrum sinense, berries. Japanese privet has a good fragrance, but of course fragrance is subjective. The issue is half of it has “helmet top” and I want to fix it before it chokes itself out but depending on what it is, cutting it down to half the size (for rejuvenation) might kill it. I have about 3 ft tall shrub that was identified as being a privet. Japanese privet is weedy in disturbed areas around buildings and has escaped and naturalized in moist areas. Neurotic gardeners can develop a love-hate relationship with their messy fruit trees.Trees with smaller fruits and ornamental specimens are especially problematic as they drop copious amounts of debris and aborted fruit. Two feet out from the fence. It has taken over the yard next door, though was never planted there. Removing lower branches to make space beneath it, and removing any dead or very weak branches during early growth, is about all you need to do. I would not eat them. the issue i have is my neighbors do not want to remove the existing 6’ tall fence until i plant the privet on my side, along the fence, and it has grown dense. My neighbor cut them down until they were a foot high and then pulled them out by the roots without my permission. I have allergies in general but don’t find it to be worse than the cedars and the oak pollen-you can’t escape. Glossy privet has large clusters of white flowers, followed by many purple-blue berries. Other than pulling out the thousands of tiny seedlings, it is very difficult to get rid of. Yesterday, I finally purchased 2 “Wavyleaf Ligustrum” /Ligustrum japonicum Recurvifolium (this is the name on the tag) with the idea to plant in front of my house, in front of a window, as bushes. We must just know who to invite over and who to have the bouncer throw out. The truth is that many privets are well-mannered garden subjects, flowering prettily, making great background plants, offering us trouble-free leaf-colors and generally getting on well with everyone else in the garden. I want the hedge to be as impenetrable as possible. . It does get clusters of berries once or twice a year. Even though they flower, we have never had them pop up elsewhere on our property, so in my mind they’re very well-behaved. It has cooling properties that are known to help the yin, and support the liver and kidneys. It works in the landscape as an evergreen ornamental shrub, however, it does not work well as a foundation plant. It is tough and durable, and its dark shiny green foliage makes it desirable. Did you carefully identify the ones you saw as non-native? Good luck with your planting, and you are right, pruning and cleaning is the key with privet. Privet was originally the name for the European semi-evergreen shrub Ligustrum vulgare, and later also It is hardy to zone 5, but loses its leaves in winter in cold zones, and may suffer some dieback. I saw online in a Proven Winners posting a picture of Ligustrum-Golden Ticket. They have 4-5 pairs of indistinct raised veins on the undersurface and grow 2-4" long. The roots are really tough to dig up. Aurora IL Area, Schaefer Greenhouses Trees and Shrubs Broadleaf Evergreen, Evergreen, Flowering Shrubs, Fruit Trees, Ornamental Trees, Shade Trees, Small Fruit Trees and Vines. Thank’s Lisa! In the rest of our yard we have privet almost everywhere and are trying to make our yard not look just like weeds. Yes the birds love it and I had traveling cedar waxwings once very grateful on their migration. Plenty of helpful info here. We have a privet tree that is about 15 years old and is about 20 ft tall. Thanks! Are the California Privet deer resistant? They were exposed to bay water tidal flooding for several days. It’s a form of European privet, Ligustrum vulgare ‘Cheyenne’. My bush/tree is 15’ tall and is covered in large fragrant white blossoms right now. Any suggestions on one that doesn’t have berries? I am excited to plant them and am looking forward to that sweet, summer smell every time I walk out of my front door. I am making a serpentine shaped hedge to back up my roses and to hide the neighbors’ very ugly wood fence. 🙂. We have privets and junipers both of which I am horribly allergic to but the flowering one is just lovely and we love honeybees. Perhaps it is growing in a lot of shade? I was told that it has the longest lasting leaves. . It has overgrown many wild areas and is very difficult to keep clear. Despite what its name suggests, the Californian Privet is the hardiest, growing well from zone 5 to zone 8. The lack of smell suggests it isn’t privet, but people’s idea of what smells strong or not varies a lot too. Thanks! The foliage is very different (simple leaves versus divided ones in elderflower), and the first rule of foraging is to be 100% sure of your plants. Out of curiosity I nibbled the top of a two leaf seedling and thought it was OK. With climate change and housing development I was wondering if there is a chance of them reviving? 😬. No flowers = no berries, and no sprouting plants in your yard, or anywhere else. Should we dead head them for the bees? ‘Lodense’ is a form of the European privet, Ligustrum vulgare, but it is certainly compact enough for your needs, and not likely to ‘take over’. As mentioned, it is replacing an existing hedge. From the description it doesn’t sound like any of the plants you mention – they all have regular flowers, not at all like the irregular, ‘chestnut’ flower you describe. . It produces toxic berries. However for a quick growing screen-I’m in the center city and our yards are small-it is reliable and manageable. It still came back!! It is invasive in warmer zones, where Ligustrum japonicum, Japanese privet, is a better choice, but I don’t think it would spread in NJ. And naturally, thanks for your effort! 1 … Is California Privet another option? You don’t have a link to the tree on your site do you? What is the best type of privet to plant for this climate across from the ocean? They might not be native, but when they make flowers, the bees love them, and the berries attract hundreds of Robins and Cedar Waxings that feed off of them for weeks. But if you are trimming regularly, flowering will be scarce – trim in spring and you won’t see much, if any, at all. They have berries, provide all season interest AND they can grow in the shade. Thanks for any info.! It is much safer to eat only what is known to be safe and edible, rather than experiment with this or that. 1,2 Privet is reported as triggering hay fever in some people, but if you trim regularly it will flower very little, if at all. Ours! That will also prevent it seeding. I live in Massachusetts. The genus contains about 50 species of erect, deciduous or evergreen shrubs, sometimes forming small or medium-sized trees, native to Europe, north Africa, Asia, many introduced and naturalised in Australasia, where only one species extends as a native into Queensland. I would go with Texas, as California grows too large for you, although it does clip well. Privet is sweet and floral, and definitely like honey, which is why the bees like it so much. Ligustrum Vulgare privets to add to my 10’ft long hedge line. Now the blooms are dying but it appears the fullness of the leaves on the bush has diminished significantly. Whatever it is, if it has been repeated pruned since the 40s you won’t kill it by cutting it down hard – I would suggest removing the biggest branches right at the bottom, and leaving the thinner branches about 2/3 of the height you actually want this plant to be. Round-Up doesn’t seem to phase them. This is a great blog on the Waxleaf Privet and seems like you have sparked a lot of conversation. (The berries are … I am looking for something evergreen as a backdrop for hydrangea on either side of a large window on the front of our house. Thoughts? The blooms are white and are shaped like a bloom from a chestnut tree; a skinny triangle shape. purple berries. I would suggest using something more suitable, and native, like creosote bush or desert hackberry, perhaps? Al;so, I made the mistake of planting two 4″ pots of Katie Ruelila 10 years ago in this backyard bed, and the rhizomes have spread 100 feet in all directions no matter how much I tried to dig them up before they escaped! But am at a loss as to what else I could use. Thank you for the detailed information. We planted a series of Japanese privets for a privacy hedge. Who is supposed to pull those all up? For low-maintenance, this plant stand out. Given this info do you believe there is still any concern with planting the waxleaf? I’ve see , looking around that people suggest on the internet that maybe peoples long lived hedges are Boxwood, but I know what Boxwood looks and smells like, and this is not that. Plan is to trim right after flowering as suggested. I really don’t want to return them, but also don’t want to worry about possible spreading. It did rain yesterday again & I thought they were looking better but today it looks like something is wrong with them . We try to take a balanced attitude, and remember that this is a very large country, and plants that are invasive in some areas are not at all in others, depending on climate and ecology. Bright light reflection against the white house but still full shade. We want a full hedge about 4 ft high to block the wind and create privacy but not something that will block our view or overtake the entire bed. Thanks for the compliment – we try to be informative and helpful, and stay away from ‘fluff’. I grow it for the privacy and for the birds and am shocked that so many people hate it. It continues to attempt to do the same in my own yard. good point. Texanum variety!!. And, if so what spacing on that? or even as an unclipped flowering shrub in a small garden. I thought it was so beautiful, I snapped a piece for ID. If you mean light shade with no sun, then they won’t do, but maybe an upright yew tree would work? There is actually no solid definition of what is ‘native’ – it depends when you start measuring it, as many plants that are today part of the ecology were brought over by early settlers, or before that, native peoples via Alaska. We live in southern Arizona and we would like to know if the berries will ever fall off. It stands about 12 to 15 feet tall and has little white flowers on it in the spring. . 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