Ligustrum - Privet
Karen Patterson
Higher Taxon - Oleaceae
The Ligustrum genus of the Oleaceae family is a species of shrubs or small trees which are either deciduous or evergreen (Foote, 1989). The leaves are opposite, simple, and entire (The New Royal Horticulture Society, 1992). The flowers are bisexual, small, and of a whitish color (Oxford Encyclopedia of Trees, 1981). The fruit is a berry like drupe and sometimes has a purple bloom. (Oxford Encyclopedia of Trees, 1981).
List of Species in the Genus Ligustrum
- Ligustrum acuminatium
- L. angustifolium
- L. brachystachyum
- L. californicum
- L. chenaultii
- L. ciliatum
- L. compactum
- L. confusum
- L. coriaceum
- L. delavayanum
- L. formosanum
- L. gracile
- L. hemyi
- L. ibolium
- L. ibota
- L. indicum
- L. ionadrum
- L. japonicum
- L. longifolium
- L. lucidum
- L. magnoliifolium
- L. massalongianum
- L. medium
- L. nepalense
- L. obtusifolium
- L. ovalifolium
- L. prattii
- L. pricei
- L. quihorii
- L. rosmarinifolium
- L. sempervirens
- L. simonu
- L. sinense
- L. spicatum
- L. stauntonu
- L. strongylophyllum
- L. 'Suwannee River'
- L. tschonoskii
- L. x vicaryi
- L. villosum
- L. vulgare
- L. yunnanense
For more information on the different species in the genusLigustrumplease see "The New Royal Horticulture Society, 1992).
Identification Guide:
Key to some of the species in the Ligustrum genus:
"Branches glabrous
Leaf blades less than 5 cm. long;
corolla tube more than 4 mm long.....L. amurense
Leaf blades more than 5 cm. long; corolla tube less than 4 mm long.....L. japonicum
Branches pubescent
Petiole glabrous.......L. ovalifolium
Petiole pubescent.......L. sinense"
This key was taken from (Radford, Ahles, and Bell, 1968).
General Info:
Ligustrum is the latin name for privet. The authority who described the Ligustrum genus is Linnaeus. There are 40-50 species in this genus, which are native to China, Japan, the Himalaya, Indomalaysia, Australia, and one species (L. vulgare) is in Europe and North Africa (Oxford Encyclopedia of Trees, 1981). To see more information on the Oleaceae family click
here
References:
The American Horticulture Society Encyclopedia of Garden Plants. Macmillan Publishing Company. New York. 1989.
Clewell, Andre F. Guide to the Vascular Plants of the Florida Panhandle. Florida State University Press. Tallahassee, Fl. 1985.
Foote, Leonard E. Native Shrubs and Woody Vines of the Southeast. Timber Press. Portland, Oregon. 1989.
Gault, Millar S. The Color Dictionary of Shrubs. Crown Publishers, INC. New York. 1976.
Hay, Roy and Patrick Synge. The Color Dictionary of Flowers and Plants for Home and Garden. Crown Publishers INC. New York.1969.
Hillier, Harold. The Hillier Colour Dictionary of Trees and Shrubs. Van Nostrand Reinhold Company. New York.1982.
Index Kewensis. Volume 2. The Clarendon Press. Oxford, England. 1960.
Lawrence, George. Taxonomy of Vascular Plants. The Macmillan Company. New York. 1951.
Odenwald, Neil G. Plants for American Landscapes. Louisiana State University Press. Baton Rouge. 1996.
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Trees of the World. Oxford University Press. Oxford, England. 1981.
Radford, Ahles, and Bell. Manual of the Vascular Floras of the Carolinas. University of North Carolina Press. Chapel Hill, N.C. 1968.
Stafleu, F.A. and Cowen R.S. Taxonomic Literature. Second Edition. Volume III. Bohn, Scheltema, and Holkema, Utrecht dr. W. Junk b.v., Publishers. Boston, MA. 1981.
Vines, Robert A. Trees, Shrubs and Woody Vines of the Southwest. University of Texas Press. Austin, TX. 1960.
Wright, Michael. The Complete Handbook of Garden Plants. The Rainbird Publishing Group Limited. New York. 1984.