Virginia Tech Dendrology

eastern swampprivet Oleaceae Forestiera acuminata (Michx.) Poir. symbol: FOAC
Leaf: Opposite, simple, deciduous, narrowly ovate, 2 to 4 inches long by 1 inches wide, with a wedge-shaped base and a long acuminate tip; margins are smooth or small-toothed to crenate, especially on the upper half; green above, paler below.
Flower: Species is monoecious, individual flowers are either male or female; flowers are fragrant, clustered, yellow, and lacking petals; female flowers are in loose 1 inch panicles, males flowers are mostly sessile, in small dense clusters of long anthers subtended by 4 bracts; appearing in early spring, before the leaves.
Fruit: A dark purple-brown elliptical 1 inch drupe; maturing in May to June.
Twig: Slender, stiff, grey brown; small rounded brown buds; with pale and raised lenticels.
Bark: Smooth or somewhat ridged, gray-brown, numerous pale lenticels.
Form: A large multistemmed shrub to small tree up to 30 feet tall, often found growing in clumps.
Looks like: Chinese privet - spicebush

Additional Range Information: Forestiera acuminata is native to North America. Range may be expanded by planting. Download the full-size PDF map.
External Links: USDA Plants Database
All material 2021 Virginia Tech Dept. of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation; Photos and text by: John Seiler, Edward Jensen, Alex Niemiera, and John Peterson; Silvics reprinted from Ag Handbook 654; range map source information