Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Rosids: Fabids: Rosales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Elaeagnus umbellata
FAMILY
Elaeagnaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Check out EDDMapS.org to see where this has been reported.
Read more about Elaeagnus at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
INCLUDING
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Elaeagnus umbellata var. parvifolia
FAMILY
Elaeagnaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 134-01-002:
Elaeagnus umbellata FAMILY Elaeagnaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH (ORTHOGRAPHIC VARIANT) Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Elaeagnus umbellatus
COMMON NAME:
Autumn-olive, Spring Silverberry, Oriental Silverleaf
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
JK Marlow jkm120330_183
March Pickens County SC
Jocassee Gorges
A noxious weed shrub, sadly still sometimes promoted for "wildlife plantings", per Weakley's Flora.
)
JK Marlow jkm120330_183b
March Pickens County SC
Jocassee Gorges
Calyx tube is slender and longer than the lobes, per Native Shrubs and Woody Vines of the Southeast (Foote & Jones, 1989).
)
JK Marlow jkm120330_184
March Pickens County SC
Jocassee Gorges
Leaf blade adaxially sparsely scaly when young, per Flora of China.
)
JK Marlow jkm080426_009
April Greenville County SC
The peltate scales of leaf lower surface uniformly silver, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
COMPARE
leaves of Elaeagnus species
)
JK Marlow jkm160402_007
April Greenville County SC
)
JK Marlow jkm160402_008
April Greenville County SC
)
JK Marlow jkm160403_235
April Greenville County SC
)
JK Marlow jkm160403_237
April Greenville County SC
)
JK Marlow jkm190406_7078
April Greenville County SC
)
JK Marlow jkm190408_7151
April Greenville County SC
)
Patrick D. McMillan pdmeumbellata_leefalls
April-May? Oconee County SC
Sumter National Forest: Andrew Pickens Ranger District
)
JK Marlow jkm140525_215
May Henderson County NC
)
JK Marlow jkm140718_981
July Spartanburg County SC
)
JK Marlow jkm140718_983
July Spartanburg County SC
)
JK Marlow jkm081019_009
October Oconee County SC
Bad Creek
Fruiting in the fall, per Weakley's Flora.
)
JK Marlow jkm081019_009b
October Oconee County SC
Bad Creek
Fruits are borne in great numbers on 1/4" stalks & appear to encircle stem, per Manual of Woody Landscape Plants (Dirr, 1975+).
)
JK Marlow jkm081019_009c
October Oconee County SC
Bad Creek
Round red juicy drupe, finely dotted with silver/silvery-brown scales, per Nonnative Invasive Plants of Southern Forests (Miller, 2003).
COMPARE
fruit of Elaeagnus species
)
JK Marlow jkm081019_010
October Oconee County SC
Bad Creek
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Elaeagnus umbellata
FAMILY
Elaeagnaceae
INCLUDING
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Elaeagnus umbellata var. parvifolia
FAMILY
Elaeagnaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 134-01-002:
Elaeagnus umbellata
FAMILY
Elaeagnaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH (ORTHOGRAPHIC VARIANT)
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Elaeagnus umbellatus
506
Shrub
Perennial
Habitat: forests and woodlands, spread by birds, per Weakley's Flora
Non-native: China/Japan
Common (rare in Coastal Plain)
Click here to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
Click here to see a map showing all occurrences known to SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria. (Zoom in to see more detail.)
This plant is causing problems in natural areas outside its native range, according to authorities such as:
- Alabama Invasive Plant Council, 2012
- Brooklyn Botanic Garden
- Georgia Exotic Pest Plant Council, 2006
- Kentucky Exotic Pest Plant Council, 2013
- NC Botanical Garden
- NC Department of Transportation
- SC Exotic Pest Plant Council, 2014
- SC Native Plant Society
- Tennessee Exotic Pest Plant Council, 2009
- US Fish & Wildlife Service
- US Forest Service Southern Research Station
- Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, 2014
IS THE PLANT "ARMED"?
Armed with spinose spur shoots
LEAVES:
Deciduous/Semi-persistant
Simple
Alternate
FLOWER:
Spring
Silvery-white/Yellow
Bisexual
Radially symmetrical
4-merous
4-lobed salverform calyx
Petals absent
4 inserted stamens
Superior ovary (hypanthium fleshy & persistent, thus ovary appearing inferior)
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Reddish-brown/Pinkish
Drupe-like
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Forest Plants of the Southeast and Their Wildlife Uses (Miller & Miller, 2005) p336
- Invasive Plants, Guide to Identification, Impacts and Control (Kaufman & Kaufman, 2007) p136
- A Field Guide for the Identification of Invasive Plants in Southern Forests (Miller, Chambliss, & Lowenstein, 2010) p030
- Invasive Exotic Plants of North Carolina (Smith, 2008) p066
- Native Shrubs and Woody Vines of the Southeast (Foote & Jones, 1989) p099
- Woody Plants of the Blue Ridge (Lance) p34
- Wildflowers & Plant Communities of the Southern Appalachian Mountains and Piedmont (Spira, 2011) p282
- Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004) p134