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Boraginaceae FAMILY

Ehretia ovalifolia

Ehretia ovalifolia

Edibility
2/5
Medicinal
0/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitDeciduous Tree
Growth—

Prefers a moderately fertile well-drained sandy loam in a sunny position[1]. Requires a sheltered position[2]. Plants are shade tolerant in continental climates but they require more sun in maritime areas in order to ripen the wood[1]. Rich fertile soils tend to encourage soft sappy growth which is then subject to frost damage over winter[1]. Young trees are tender in Britain but they become perfectly hardy as they grow older[3]. The young growth in spring is frost-tender[PFAF]. Closely allied to E. acuminata and included in that species by some botanists[3]. A tree was 10 metres tall at Bath botanical gardens in 1989[PFAF]. The flowers, which are produced on the ripened wood of the previous season's growth, have a soft sweet perfume[4].

Propagation

Seed - we have no information on this species but suggest sowing it as soon as it is ripe in a greenhouse. Sow stored seed in late winter or early spring. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, mid summer in a frame. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Ehretia+ovalifolia>

Pollinators

Insects

References

  1. [1]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
  2. [2]Protabase - Plant Resources of Tropical Africa. — http://www.prota.org ↩︎An excellent on-line database with detailed information on over 3,200 species of useful plants of Africa.
  3. [3]Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. — Bean. W. · Murray · 1981 · ISBN - ↩︎A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.
  4. [4]Scented Flora of the World. — Genders. R. · Robert Hale. London. · 1994 · ISBN 0-7090-5440-8 ↩︎An excellent, comprehensive book on scented plants giving a few other plant uses and brief cultivation details. There are no illustrations.
  5. [5]Flora of Japan — http://www.foj.info ↩︎An on-line version of the flora - an excellent resource.
  6. [6]Tanaka's Cyclopedia of Edible Plants of the World. — Tanaka. T. & Nakao S. · Keigaku Publishing; Tokyo · 1976 · ISBN - ↩︎The most comprehensive list of edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.
  7. [7]Plants for Human Consumption. — Kunkel. G. · Koeltz Scientific Books · 1984 · ISBN 3874292169 ↩︎An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of Latin names with a brief list of edible parts.
  8. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎