Ligustrum ovalifolium Garden Privet

A long-lived, usually-evergreen shrub, native to Japan, which is used commonly for hedging in gardens. It differs from Wild Privet (Ligustrum vulgare) in its leaves which are more widely elliptical in shape. Some cultivated varieties have yellow or variegated leaves. Its history in Britain is relatively recent, being cultivated from the mid 19th Century and first recorded wild in 1939. It is a widespread relic of cultivation throughout much of Britain, except the far north, and it frequently occurs as a garden throw-out in waste places. It is found throughout West Glamorgan as a garden escape and it is present in all urban areas as a garden hedge; the distribution map here does mostly records of persistent, naturalised plants. Garden plants, which are trimmed regularly, are only occasionally seen with flowers and rarely with fruit. In contrast, naturalised plants frequently produce flowers and occasionally produce fruit. Frugiverous birds which eat the berries may effect seed dispersal but the extent to which some wild plants are derived from seed is not clear. Larvae of the Privet Hawkmoth (Sphinx ligustri) feed on the leaves of wild and garden privet. Privet hedges in gardens are sometimes attacked by Honey Fungus (Armillaria mellea).