Texas swampprivet

Description

Forestiera angustifolia, also known as Narrow-leaf Forestiera, Desert Olive, Panalero, Elbow Bush and Chaparral Blanco, is a member of the Oleaceae family. This evergreen shrub, which grows three to eight feet tall and equally as wide, has stiff, dense branches, emanating from the stems at approximately 90 degree angles, in the shape of elbows. Dark green, dense, linear leaves are about 3/4 inch long. This shrub grows in Zone 8 in the central, western and southern parts of Texas, and on the Rio Grande Plains in mixed-brush coastal areas or open woodlands, on dry, limey, well-drained soils. Elbow bush is a useful plant for sunny, dry sites, or windy and saline locations. The yellow-green flowers appear in the spring on separate male and female plants before new leafout. Dark purple, one-seeded berries form in drupes and are a good source of food for livestock, small mammals and birds.