Ligustrum lucidum, commonly called Chinese privet, glossy privet or waxleaf privet, is an evergreen shrub or small tree that is native to southern China and Korea. It is often grown as a shrub to 12-15' tall, but if trained as a tree will grow much larger to 20-30' tall. Glossy, pointed, opposite, simple, ovate to lanceolate, evergreen, dark green leaves (to 4-6" long) have transparent leaf margins. Small, unpleasantly fragrant, creamy white flowers in upright pyramidal panicles (to 5-8" long) bloom in late summer. Flowers are followed by inedible blue-black drupes (1/4" long) which persist on the plant in winter. Fruits are attractive to birds. In China, this shrub is sometimes grown for culturing wax insects (insects are introduced to the tree and the wax secreted is harvested for various uses including candle-making and medicine).
Growing Instructions
Fill several pots with a mixture of half sand and half peat moss or you can use another well-draining growth medium. Sow several of the seeds in each pot. Then sprinkle a thin layer of the growth medium on the seeds. The seeds need some light in order to germinate so the layer of medium should be about 1/4 of an inch thick. Mist the pots so that they are uniformly moist. Then put the pots in an area in indirect sunlight and mist them regularly but don't overwater them. They need well-drained soil. Fertilize the seedlings with a diluted, complete fertilizer. When the seedlings are 1 foot tall, they can be transplanted. They should be planted in fertile potting soil in an area in full sun or light shade.