2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Oval-leaved privet (lat. Ligustrum ovalifolium) - ornamental shrub; a representative of the genus Privet of the Olive family. A native of the islands of Shikoku and Honshu (Japan). Natural habitats are light forests located near the sea coast. Often on sale. Non-frost-resistant species, in severe winters it freezes heavily.
Characteristics of culture
Oval-leaved privet is a large evergreen upright growing shrub with a loose crown and hanging shoots. When grown in cold climates, the plants shed their foliage for the winter. The height also depends on the growing conditions, for example, in the Moscow region oval-leaved privet does not exceed a height of 1.3 m, in regions with a mild climate - up to 5 m, in Japan - up to 10 m. Annual growth in width - up to 15 m, in height - up to 15-20 cm.
Branches are tetrahedral or rounded, gray, glabrous, often with lenticels. Leaves are dark green or green, oblong-oval, elliptical, rounded or rhombic, opposite, shiny, rough to the touch, semi-leathery, petiolate, with a wide-wedge-shaped base, up to 7 cm long, up to 3 cm wide. On the reverse side, the foliage has yellowish tint. The flowers are almost sessile, creamy white, narrow, equipped with a long tube, collected in pyramidal apical inflorescences up to 10 cm long.
It should be noted that the flowers have a rather unpleasant and strongly pronounced odor, but despite this, they attract bees, butterflies and bumblebees. Flowers appear in June - July, which depends on the growing conditions; in the conditions of the Moscow region, oval-leaved privet practically does not bloom. The fruits are round, black, small, the size of a pea, are poisonous, therefore they are not used for food by people. The fruits ripen in October - November.
Currently, there are several forms of oval-leaved privet on the garden market:
* f. variegatum - the form is represented by shrubs with golden variegated foliage;
* f. aureo-marginatum - the form is characterized by shrubs with yellow foliage or foliage with a yellow border;
* f. tricolor - the form is represented by shrubs with yellow, pink or white variegated leaves;
* f. aureo-variegatum - the form is characterized by shrubs with foliage covered with golden yellow spots.
Form f. variegatum is the most common. Suitable for cultivation in the southern regions of Russia, in such conditions shrubs reach several meters.
Growing features
Privet oval-leaved prefers areas with light, slightly alkaline or alkaline soils. Calcareous soils are also encouraged. The location is preferably semi-shaded, open to the sun and heavily shaded areas are highly undesirable. It is not recommended to plant shrubs in lowlands, where melt water accumulates in spring, because the culture does not tolerate waterlogging.
The oval-leaved privet is propagated by seeds, green and semi-lignified cuttings, root shoots and dividing the bush. Seeds are taken from ripe fruits and sown. The seedlings are kept in a room with an air temperature of about 6-8C. If spring sowing is planned, preliminary cold stratification is required for 3-4 months at a temperature of 2-3C. The easiest way to propagate the culture is green cuttings. Caring for oval-leaved privet consists in watering during severe drought, fertilizing with mineral fertilizers and organic matter (twice a season), pruning and shelter for the winter.
I must say that oval-leaved privet easily tolerates radical pruning, shrubs are also suitable for a haircut. As already mentioned, the species in question is not winter-hardy enough, the lower limit is -18C, which is why for the winter the plants should be covered with non-woven material in 3-4 layers or spruce branches. The soil in the near-trunk zone is mulched, this is necessary to protect and insulate the root system.
By the way, mulching for privet is very useful. In spring and summer, mulch will protect shrubs from weeds, overheating and rapid evaporation of moisture. In this case, mulch is applied in the spring after the soil has warmed up. To enhance growth, plants are fed with nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizers (at the rate of 10-15 g per 1 sq. M), and potash fertilizers (15 g per 1 sq. M). It is also recommended to add lime or dolomite flour to the soil. This procedure is required to reduce acidity.
Recommended:
Privet
Privet (lat.Ligustrum) - a genus of shrubs and trees of the Olive family. All there are about 50 species. Under natural conditions, privet grows in warm deciduous and floodplain forests, as well as oak and hornbeam groves. The plant is widespread in North Africa, Europe, Asia, Australia and the Himalayas.
Kinkan Oval
Kinkan oval is one of the plants of the family called rue, in Latin the name of this plant sounds like this: Fortunella margarita. As for the name of this family itself, in Latin it will be like this: Rutaceae. Description of the oval kinkan It should be noted that oval kinkan can hardly be called a particularly whimsical plant to care for, however, it is recommended to carefully observe some of the cultivation features.
Irga Oval
Irga oval is one of the plants of the family called Rosaceae, in Latin the name of this plant will sound like this: Amelanchier ovalis. As for the name of the oval irgi family itself, then in Latin it will be like this: Rosaceae Juss. Description of irgi oval Irga oval is a shrub whose height will fluctuate between half a meter and three and a half meters.
Peony Back Oval
Peony back oval is one of the plants of the family called peony, in Latin the name of this plant will sound as follows: Paeonia obovata Maxim. As for the name of the peony family itself, inverse oval, then in Latin it will be like this: Paeoniaceae Rudolphi.
Amur Privet
Amur privet (lat.Ligustrum amurense) - ornamental shrub; a representative of the genus Privet of the Olive family. North China is considered to be the homeland. One of the most frost-resistant species, it can withstand frosts down to -35C. Characteristics of culture Amur Privet is a moisture-loving and light-loving deciduous shrub up to 3-3.
