border privet (Invasive Plants of Maryland)

border privet

Ligustrum obtusifolium

Description and biology ⁹

Plant: deciduous or semi-evergreen shrubs that grow from 8-20 ft. tall; trunks with multiple stems with long leafy branches; the presence or absence of hairs and type of hairs on stems is helpful in distinguishing species.
Leaves: opposite, simple, entire, short-stalked, ranging in length from 1-3 in. and varying in shape from oval, elliptic to oblong.
Flowers, fruits and seeds: flowers small, white and tubular with four petals and occur in clusters at branch tips; fragrant; late spring to early summer (May to July); length of corolla tube length ranges from 1/10 in. (Chinese) to ¼ in. (border); anthers exceed the corolla lobes (Chinese and California); fruit is small black to blue-black oval to spherical drupe (i.e., a fleshy fruit with 1-several stony seeds inside), mature late summer to fall.
Spreads: by birds that consume fruits and excrete seeds undamaged in new locations; can spread locally through root sprouting.

Distribution and habitat in the united states ¹⁰

All four privet species featured here have been reported to be invasive in the mid-Atlantic region; some are recognized as invasive elsewhere in the eastern U.S. and nationwide. They thrive in floodplains, fields, disturbed forests and forest edges.

Prevention and control ¹¹

Do not plant privets. Small plants can be dug out pulled out by hand or with the help of a mattock or heavy Weed Wrench® type tool. Larger plants can be cut repeatedly or treated with a systemic herbicide. Herbicide can be sprayed on foliage or applied to bark or cut stems and stumps. No biological controls are available for any of these species. Known pests that affect privets include a foliage-feeding insect native to Europe (Macrophya punctumalbum), a fungal leaf spot (Pseudocercospora ligustri) and a common root crown bacteria (Agrobacterium tume-faciens).

History in the united states ¹²

There are no species of Ligustrum native to the U.S. Privets have been introduced to the U.S. since the 1800s and some species even earlier. They are commonly used as hedges in yards, gardens and other landscapes from which they have escaped and are now well established in the wild.

Sources and Credits

(c) John Hilty, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/trees/photos/border_privet1.jpg
(c) Dalgial, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ligustrum_obtusifolium_4.JPG
(c) tminatbe, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by tminatbe
(c) John Hilty, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/trees/photos/border_privet3.jpg
(c) anonymous, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/trees/photos/border_privet2.jpg
no rights reserved, uploaded by Daniel Atha
(c) javiehweg, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), uploaded by javiehweg
(c) yaoshawn, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by yaoshawn
(c) Unknown, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/22878018
(c) Unknown, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/22878016
(c) Unknown, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/22878019
(c) Unknown, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://eol.org/data_objects/22878015

More Info

Range Map

iNat Map

Flower color	white

‹ › ×

border privet

Description and biology 9

Distribution and habitat in the united states 10

Prevention and control 11

History in the united states 12