Elaeagnus angustifolia (Russian olive, "Yanagibagumi")

Japanese name: ヤナギバグミ （柳葉茱萸、柳葉胡頽子）
Scientific name: Elaeagnus angustifolia

[Overview]
A deciduous shrub or small tree that often reaches 3–7 m in height, though in warm regions it may be semi-evergreen.
The young branches and both sides of the leaves are densely covered with silvery white scales, so they look whitish.
It branches well and grows vigorously.
The twigs often have thorns.
The leaves are simple and alternate, long and narrow like willow leaves, oblong-lanceolate to linear-lanceolate, 4–8 cm long and 0.4–3.2 cm wide.
The upper surface of the leaf is dark green to grayish green, and the underside is silvery white.
The leaf margin is entire.
The petiole is very short.
The flowers are borne one to three at a time in the leaf axils; they have no petals, but a tubular calyx that is silvery white outside and yellow inside, with four lobes at the tip.
The flowers are fragrant.
The fruit is an ovoid to spherical false fruit about 0.7–2.5 cm long; when young it is densely covered with scales and looks whitish, and when ripe it turns yellowish brown to brown.

[Uses]
The fruit is sweet and edible, though its texture is mealy.
Because it fixes nitrogen, it is also used for greening deserts and improving poor soil.

[Cultivation]
Propagate from seed or by cuttings.
It dislikes being transplanted.
It prefers slightly dry, sunny, well-drained soil.
It dislikes excess moisture, but it adapts to a variety of soils and is also highly tolerant of its environment.
If the conditions suit it, it grows well even when left alone.
Take care not to overwater; for potted plants, water thoroughly after the soil has dried, and for plants in the ground, rainfall is sufficient unless sunny weather continues in summer and the soil becomes very dry.
Fertilizer is unnecessary because it fixes nitrogen from the air itself, but for potted plants, apply a modest amount of slow-release fertilizer in spring or autumn, depending on how the plant looks.
It grows vigorously and its branches tend to sprawl, so hard pruning in winter is advisable.
It tolerates trimming well.
There are no particular pests or diseases.

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