Characteristics
| Hardiness zone | 6b |
|---|---|
| Flower color | cream |
| Foliage type | evergreen |
| Plant form | round |
| Mature height | 10 feet |
| Spread | 10 feet |
| Light requirements | full sun to partial shade |
| Moisture requirements | dry to moist |
| Plant origin | hybrid |
Ebbing’s Silverberry
Botanical name: Elaeagnus x ebbingei
A large, dense evergreen shrub that is very adaptable and drought resistant; subtle, creamy white flower clusters in fall have a wonderful fragrance; a great, fast growing landscape shrub that can be maintained as a screen or hedge; does not self-seed.
Other names: Oleaster, Silverthorn
Ornamental Features
Ebbing's Silverberry has attractive silver-spotted dark green foliage which emerges coppery-bronze in spring. The glossy pointy leaves are highly ornamental and remain dark green throughout the winter. It features subtle clusters of fragrant creamy white bell-shaped flowers along the branches from mid to late fall. The fruit is not ornamentally significant.
Landscape Attributes
Ebbing's Silverberry is a dense multi-stemmed evergreen shrub with a more or less rounded form. Its average texture blends into the landscape, but can be balanced by one or two finer or coarser trees or shrubs for an effective composition.
This shrub will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and is best pruned in late winter once the threat of extreme cold has passed. It has no significant negative characteristics.
Ebbing's Silverberry is recommended for the following landscape applications;
Hedges/Screening, Naturalizing And Woodland Gardens, Container Planting
Planting and Growing
Ebbing's Silverberry will grow to be about 10 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 10 feet. It has a low canopy, and is suitable for planting under power lines. It grows at a fast rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 30 years.
This shrub does best in full sun to partial shade. It is very adaptable to both dry and moist locations, and should do just fine under average home landscape conditions. It is considered to be drought-tolerant, and thus makes an ideal choice for xeriscaping or the moisture-conserving landscape. It is particular about its soil conditions, with a strong preference for clay, alkaline soils, and is able to handle environmental salt. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments. This particular variety is an interspecific hybrid. It can be propagated by cuttings; however, as a cultivated variety, be aware that it may be subject to certain restrictions or prohibitions on propagation.
Ebbing's Silverberry makes a fine choice for the outdoor landscape, but it is also well-suited for use in outdoor pots and containers. Because of its height, it is often used as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the center of the pot, surrounded by smaller plants and those that spill over the edges. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when grown in a container, it may not perform exactly as indicated on the tag - this is to be expected. Also note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.
