Japanese Privet (Ligustrum japonicum)

Family: Oleaceae | Edibility: Edible (1/5)

Bloom Color: White. Main Bloom Time: Early summer, Early spring, Late summer, Late spring, Mid summer, Mid spring. Form: Rounded, Spreading or horizontal, Vase.

Edible Parts & Harvest Seasons

Edible Parts: Leaves, Shoots

Harvest Seasons: Early Summer, Fall, Late Summer, Spring

Flavor & Culinary Uses

The roasted seed is a coffee substitute. Young shoots - cooked. A famine food, used when all else fails. The shoots contain a glycoside and are probably toxic. — The roasted seed is a coffee substitute.; Young shoots - cooked.; A famine food, used when all else fails.; The shoots contain a glycoside and are probably toxic.

Habitat & North American Range

Woods and thickets in lowland and hills, C. and S. Japan. (Zone 7, Zone 8, Zone 9, Zone 10)