Small leaved Privet, Chinese Privet (Ligustrum sinense)
Weed of the Month Sept 2021
Small leaved Privet
Common names: Small leaved Privet, Chinese Privet
Scientific name: Ligustrum sinense
Native to: China and SE Asia
Family: Oleaceae. Olives are in this family.
Habit: Shrub to 3m tall.
Leaves: Opposite 2 to 7 cm long
Flowers: Small white fragrant. Flowering in the local area in Spring.
Fruits: Round black fruit 4 to 8mm long
Control measures: Cut and paint with chemical.
Dispersal method: Birds love the seeds and so spread the plants through the bush. Roots also sucker.
Small leaved Privet is a prolific weed in the Noosa shire. When established it can form dense thickets that exclude all other vegetation. There is also a Broad – Leaf Privet Ligustrum lucidum that is found here but is more troublesome in areas like Maleny.
Asthmatics and allergy sufferers should be very cautious around Privet plants when they are flowering. The perfume and pollen are proven triggers for allergic reactions.
Native alternatives: Cockspur Maclura cochinchinensis is a small shrub that likes to grow in the same areas as Privet. At a glance the leaves look very similar and so it is easy to confuse the two. Cockspur has small thorns and this feature is used to distinguish it from Privet. It is a great habitat for small birds but due to the thorns best kept to an area that isn’t visited by humans.
For more information
https://weeds.brisbane.qld.gov.au/weeds/small-leaved-privet
Weeds of the Sunshine Coast page 195, 2nd edition.
By Michelle Newall