Notelaea ligustrina

Notelaea ligustrina, known as the privet mock olive, native olive, doral or silkwood, is a plant in the olive family, found in south eastern Australia. It is known to grow in and near rainforests south of Monga National Park in New South Wales, and into Victoria and the island state of Tasmania.[3] The specific epithet ligustrina refers to the Privet, which it resembles.[4]

Privet mock olive
Mount Imlay, Australia
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Asterids
Order:	Lamiales
Family:	Oleaceae
Genus:	Notelaea
Species:	N. ligustrina
Binomial name
Notelaea ligustrina Vent.[2]
Synonyms
Nestegis ligustrina (Vent.) L.A.S.Johnson

It is a shrub or small tree capable of growing up to 16 metres tall, with a trunk diameter of 80 cm. It features dull, hairless leaves that are 3 to 10 cm long and 10 to 25 mm wide. Leaf stems are purple in colour and 2 to 5 mm long. From January to April, greenish yellow flowers form racemes extending from the leaf axils . Relatively large fruit mature from summer to Easter, and are up to 10 mm in diameter. These fruits are generally a shade of pink, varying from white to a dark purple. Though edible and often heavy yielding, the fruit have a large pip and a strong, bitter taste which gives them little food value.