You are here
Magnoliopsida
Ligustrum sinense Lour.
EOL Text
More info on this topic.
This species can be found in the following regions of the western United States (according to the Bureau of Land Management classification of Physiographic Regions of the western United States):
BLM PHYSIOGRAPHIC REGIONS [2]:
13 Rocky Mountain Piedmont CE
14 Great Plains JCE
It is recommended that you contact your local agricultural extension specialist and/or county weed specialist for control measures pertinent to your area.
Various control measures have been reported for Chinese privet. For small areas and for relatively small plants, hand removal is effective. Digging tools such as a mattock are useful for removing underground parts. Broken root fragments need to be removed because of their ability to re-sprout. Repeated mowing and cutting will control the spread of privet, but will not eradicate it. For such treatment, stems should be cut as close to the ground as possible (Bartlow et al. 1997). Mechanical removal is especially effective in the early stages of an invasion when the numbers of plants are relatively small.
For larger natural areas where the use of chemical herbicides is inadvisable, enlisting numerous helpers to mechanically remove Chinese privet may be required. Using heavy equipment for large-scale removal may be appropriate in some locations, but the negative effects of soil disturbance and the potential for erosion need to be considered.
Herbicide treatments properly applied can selectively remove invasive species with minimal soil disturbance. Even slight soil disturbance may offer opportunities for re-invasion. When considering chemical control, local laws affecting herbicide use must be observed. Appropriate precautions in various habitats may be needed. Kline & Duquesnel (1996) point out that not all herbicides are appropriate for all areas. Some may damage non-target species. Herbicides will behave differently in different environments and under different conditions (Neal et al. 1986). For example, they may degrade more slowly in wetter, more anaerobic soils or move downward in sandier soils. A careful monitoring program is essential for evaluating herbicide use.
Randall & Marinelli (1996) report effective control of Chinese privet with glyphosate herbicides stating that foliage treatment is best for actively growing plants. Foliar spray methods should be used only where risk to non-target species is minimal. A 2% solution of glyphosate or 2% triclopyr with a one-half percent of non-ionic surfactant is reportedly effective for treating Chinese privet (Bartlow et al. 1997).
Kline & Duquesnel (1996) discuss various treatments for woody species including Brazilian pepper, Australian pine, Chinese tallow, and other tree-like species. They note that within mixed stands single stem treatments consisting of basal-bark treatments, cut-surface treatments (injection, cut-stump, or girdle), or direct foliar applications may be effective. A typical basal or cut-surface treatment consists of a 10-50% mixture of one of the following types of herbicides (glyphosate, hexazinone, imazapyr, or triclopyr) with an oil dilutant. They provide a table for use as a guide for selecting application methods and herbicides for various invasive plant species.
Brian Bowen, President of the Tennessee Exotic Pest Plant Council, reports success in controlling privet using 25% glyphosate/75% horticulture oil applied as a cut-surface treatment (personal communication, 1997). He advises against using this application as the plants break dormancy because upward movement of the sap reduces the treatment’s effectiveness. The same herbicide preparation is effective when applied to cut stumps as long as the ground isn’t frozen (Bartlow et al. 1997). For the basal bark method, applying a mixture of 25% triclopyr/75% horticultural oil to the basal parts of the shrub is reported (Bartlow et al. 1997). W. N. Kline, Senior Scientist, Dow Elanco, Duluth, Georgia, also favors basal-bark or cut-surface treatment over foliar application (pers. comm. 1997). The latter causes such rapid leaf drop that translocation of the herbicide in the plants is reduced, thereby lowering its effectiveness. Furthermore, he reports that disturbance (e.g., fire or mechanical) should be avoided for about one year following basal-bark or cut-surface treatments to allow translocation of herbicides. Disturbance of the plants or root system too soon after treatment may disrupt translocation and result in resprouting.
Fire is a naturally occurring phenomenon that is essential for certain native plant communities to exist. Its use in exotic pest plant control is being investigated. Faulkner et al. (1989) reported its effectiveness as a management tool in the Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park for controlling Ligustrum sinense and other pest plants. Fire had the benefit of killing large privet stems, but the vigorous resprouting that followed burning offset this gain. Fall and winter burns had desirable aesthetic effects by considerably reducing the biomass of privet, but no long-term benefits were achieved since the species still remained.
Fire was also used as a herbicide pretreatment (Faulkner et al. 1989). In the spring following the fall and winter burns, foliar application of glyphosate damaged or killed a majority of the Chinese privet shoots. Burning facilitated foliar application of herbicide by reducing biomass. However, it did not increase the effectiveness of the herbicide compared to the unburned controls.
Privet has no known biological controls. A foliage-feeding insect native to Europe, Macrophya punctumalbum, is a known pest. Privet is also susceptible to a fungal leaf spot, Pseudocercospora ligustri, and a common root crown bacteria, Agrobacterium tume-faciens (Bartlow et al. 1997).
(key to state/province abbreviations)
Amur privet:
AL | AR | IA | KY | ME |
MD | MA | NJ | NY | NC |
PA | SC | TN | TX | VA |
Japanese privet:
AL | FL | GA | LA |
MD | MS | NC | SC |
TN | TX | VA | PR |
Chinese privet:
AL | AR | CT | FL | GA | IA | KY |
LA | MD | MA | MS | MO | NJ | NC |
OK | RI | SC | TN | TX | VA | PR |
European privet:
AL | AR | CT | DE | FL | GA | IL |
IN | KY | LA | ME | MD | MA | MI |
MO | MT | NE | NH | NJ | NY | NC |
OH | OR | PA | RI | SC | TN | TX |
UT | VT | VA | WV | WI | DC |
BC | NF | NS | ON |
More info for the terms: adventitious, ground residual colonizer, initial off-site colonizer, secondary colonizer, shrub
POSTFIRE REGENERATION STRATEGY [52]:
Tall shrub, adventitious bud/root crown
Small shrub, adventitious bud/root crown
Ground residual colonizer (on-site, initial community)
Initial off-site colonizer (off-site, initial community)
Secondary colonizer (on-site or off-site seed sources)
More info for the term: cover
A variety of birds eat privet fruits, including cedar waxwings and northern bobwhite [25,36,67,73]. Chinese privet fruit may be particularly important to northern bobwhite in winter after other food sources are depleted [34]. Deer browse Chinese privet and European privet [25,36,55,56], and it is likely they browse other privets too. In southeastern Texas, cotton rats consume Chinese privet fruits in fall and winter and consume foliage in fall [44].
Palatability/nutritional value: Terminal twigs and foliage of Chinese privet maintain a crude protein content of >10.5% year-round [56]. However, privet may be toxic to livestock [8,28].
Cover value: Chinese privet provides cover for northern bobwhite in northern Georgia [34].
Anhui, Fujian, Gansu, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Taiwan, Xizang, Yunnan, Zhejiang [Vietnam]
License | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ |
Rights holder/Author | eFloras.org Copyright © Missouri Botanical Garden |
Source | http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=200017798 |
More info for the terms: low-severity fire, root crown
Fire adaptations: Chinese privet survives fire by sprouting from the root crown in response to damage of aboveground tissue [14,31]. It is likely, though speculative, that privets generally respond to fire damage by sprouting from the root crown, and/or by root suckering (see Fire Effects). More research is needed on the fire ecology of privets in North America.
FIRE REGIMES: Chinese privet was present in a longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) forest in southern Alabama, prior to and following 3 annual prescribed burns where fire had previously been excluded for >45 years. No further information is available about Chinese privet at this particular site, but we may presume from this report that it has some ability to persist (at least in the short term) in frequent, low-severity FIRE REGIMES characteristic of longleaf pine ecosystems in the Southeast [66].
As of this writing (2003), there are no other accounts in the literature of interactions between privets and specific FIRE REGIMES.
The following table lists fire return intervals for communities or ecosystems throughout North America where privet may occur. Amur privet has not been included in this list because information about North American distribution and occurrence is lacking for this species. This list is presented as a guideline to illustrate historic FIRE REGIMES and is not to be interpreted as a strict description of FIRE REGIMES for privets. For further information on fire regimes in these communities or ecosystems see the corresponding FEIS summary for the dominant taxa listed below.
Privet spp.* | Community or Ecosystem | Dominant Species | Fire Return Interval Range (years) |
CE | maple-beech-birch | Acer-Fagus-Betula | > 1000 |
E | silver maple-American elm | A. saccharinum-Ulmus americana | < 35 to 200 |
C E | sugar maple | A. saccharum | > 1000 |
E | sugar maple-basswood | A. saccharum-Tilia americana | > 1000 |
JCE | Atlantic white-cedar | Chamaecyparis thyoides | 35 to > 200 |
CE | beech-sugar maple | Fagus spp.-Acer saccharum | > 1000 [70] |
CE | cedar glades | Juniperus virginiana | 3-7 [42] |
JCE | yellow-poplar | Liriodendron tulipifera | 70] |
C | Everglades | Mariscus jamaicensis | < 10 |
C | melaleuca | Melaleuca quinquenervia | 38] |
E | northeastern spruce-fir | Picea-Abies spp. | 35-200 |
E | black spruce | Picea mariana | 35-200 |
E | conifer bog** | Picea mariana-Larix laricina | 35-200 |
E | red spruce** | P. rubens | 35-200 |
E | jack pine | Pinus banksiana | 12] |
CE | shortleaf pine | P. echinata | 2-15 |
CE | shortleaf pine-oak | P. echinata-Quercus spp. | < 10 |
JC | slash pine | P. elliottii | 3-8 |
JC | slash pine-hardwood | P. elliottii-variable | 70] |
C | South Florida slash pine | P. elliottii var. densa | 1-5 [38,70] |
JC | longleaf-slash pine | P. palustris-P. elliottii | 1-4 [38,70] |
JC | longleaf pine-scrub oak | P. palustris-Quercus spp. | 6-10 [70] |
E | red pine (Great Lakes region) | P. resinosa | 10-200 (10***) [12,16] |
E | red-white-jack pine** | P. resinosa-P. strobus-P. banksiana | 10-300 [12,23] |
CE | pitch pine | P. rigida | 6-25 [5,24] |
JC | pocosin | P. serotina | 3-8 |
CE | eastern white pine | P. strobus | 35-200 |
CE | eastern white pine-eastern hemlock | P. strobus-Tsuga canadensis | 35-200 |
E | eastern white pine-northern red oak-red maple | P. strobus-Q. rubra-Acer rubrum | 35-200 |
JCE | loblolly pine | P. taeda | 3-8 |
JCE | loblolly-shortleaf pine | P. taeda-P. echinata | 10 to < 35 |
CE | Virginia pine | P. virginiana | 10 to |
CE | Virginia pine-oak | P. virginiana-Quercus spp. | 10 to < 35 |
JCE | sycamore-sweetgum-American elm | Platanus occidentalis-Liquidambar styraciflua-Ulmus americana | 70] |
JCE | eastern cottonwood | Populus deltoides | 42] |
E | aspen-birch | P. tremuloides-Betula papyrifera | 35-200 [12,70] |
C | mesquite | Prosopis glandulosa | 33,42] |
CE | black cherry-sugar maple | Prunus serotina-Acer saccharum | > 1000 |
CE | oak-hickory | Quercus-Carya spp. | < 35 |
E | northeastern oak-pine | Quercus-Pinus spp. | 10 to 70] |
JCE | oak-gum-cypress | Quercus-Nyssa-spp.-Taxodium distichum | 35 to > 200 [38] |
CE | southeastern oak-pine | Quercus-Pinus spp. | < 10 |
E | white oak-black oak-northern red oak | Q. alba-Q. velutina-Q. rubra | < 35 |
E | northern pin oak | Q. ellipsoidalis | < 35 |
CE | bear oak | Q. ilicifolia | < 35 |
E | bur oak | Q. macrocarpa | 70] |
E | oak savanna | Q. macrocarpa/Andropogon gerardii-Schizachyrium scoparium | 2-14 [42,70] |
CE | chestnut oak | Q. prinus | 3-8 |
CE | northern red oak | Q. rubra | 10 to < 35 |
JCE | post oak-blackjack oak | Q. stellata-Q. marilandica | < 10 |
CE | black oak | Q. velutina | < 35 |
JC | live oak | Q. virginiana | 10 to70] |
JC | cabbage palmetto-slash pine | Sabal palmetto-Pinus elliottii | 38,70] |
C | southern cordgrass prairie | Spartina alterniflora | 1-3 [42] |
CE | eastern hemlock-yellow birch | Tsuga canadensis-Betula alleghaniensis | > 200 [70] |
JCE | elm-ash-cottonwood | Ulmus-Fraxinus-Populus spp. | 12,70] |
* J = Japanese privet, C = Chinese privet, E = European privet
** fire return interval varies widely; trends in variation are noted in the species summary
*** mean
More info for the terms: shrub, shrubs
Privets are nonnative shrubs or trees with smooth bark and slender twigs [1,21,65]. Leaves are opposite, and fruits are drupes produced in panicles [9,20,25,43,67,75]. Amur privet is a 12- to 16-foot-tall (3.7-5 m) shrub [1,62]. Japanese privet and Chinese privet are tall shrubs or small trees, 10 to 39 feet (3-12 m) tall, with trunks often clumped and inclined [20,43,67]. European privet is a 10- to 16-foot-tall (3-5 m), much-branched shrub [19,54,71].
Amur privet is considered deciduous [62]. Japanese privet is considered evergreen [20,62,75]. Leaf retention in Chinese privet and European privet is variable and is presumably dependent upon multiple site factors such as drought, shading, and temperature. These species have been described as deciduous [54,71,75], tardily deciduous [20], semideciduous [65], somewhat evergreen [65], half-evergreen [3,19,54,71], and evergreen [25,65]. Urbatsch [65] indicates European privet is relatively more deciduous than Chinese privet.
Japanese privet is single seeded. Seeds are somewhat rounded and wrinkled on 1 side; the other surfaces plane. Chinese privet fruits yield 1-2 seeds each [67]. Leaf and fruit size data are listed below.
leaf size | fruit size | |||
length | width | diameter | length | |
Amur privet | ≥2 inches (5 cm) [43] | ≤1 inch (2.5 cm) [43] | 0.24-0.32 inch (6-8 mm) [43] | |
Japanese privet | 1.2-3.9 inches (3-10 cm) [9,20,43,67,75] | 1-2 inches (2.5-5 cm) [20,43] | ~0.2 inch (5 mm) [20,43,67] | 0.24-0.47 inch (6-12 mm) [20,43,67] |
Chinese privet | 0.6-2.8 inch (1.5-7 cm) [9,20,25,43,67] | 0.5-1 inch (1.3-2.5 cm) [20,43,67] | 0.16-0.24 inch (4-6 mm) [20,43,67] | 0.16-0.28 inch (4-7 mm) [20,43,67] |
European privet | 0.8-2.4 inches (2-6 cm) [19,25,54,71] | 0.3-0.8 inch (0.8-2 cm) [71] | 0.16-0.24 inch (4-6 mm) [54] |
In general, autecological information about privets is lacking. In particular, such information about Japanese privet is sparse, and information about Amur privet is absent from the literature.
The preceding description provides characteristics of privet that may be relevant to fire ecology and is not meant to be used for identification. Keys for identifying privets are available (e.g. [9,11,19,20,27,37,43,69,75]). See Plants Database and the Louisiana State University Agcenter's websites for photos and descriptive characteristics.