ELAEAGNACEAE 



Silver Buffaloberry. Silverberry 

 Shepherdia argentea (Pursh) Nutt. {Elaeagnus utilis A. Nels.) 



HABIT. A bushy, silvery shrub or small tree rarely 15-16 

 feet high, stoloniferous and thicket-forming. 



LEAVES. Opposite; simple; elliptic to oblong; 1-3 inches 

 long and V3-I inch wide; rounded or acute at apex; margin 

 entire; densely silvery-scurfy on both faces; thick; deciduous; 

 petioles stout, J4 inch long. 



FLOWERS. Regular; polygamous; 1-3 in axil of each leaf; 

 appearing after leaves; calyx tube silvery without, V4 inch long, 

 4-lobed; corolla lacking, stamens 4, short, attached near calyx 

 throat; ovary enveloped in receptacle. 



FRUIT. Drupe; globose to oval; Yi-Vi inch long; silvery; 

 flesh mealy; the stone with about 8 longitudinal ridges. 



TWIGS. Rather slender; round; rusty-brown and covered 

 with scurfy scales; leaf scars minute. Winter buds: Vq-V^ inch 

 long, oblong, scales scurfy. 



BARK. Thin; dull gray; smooth or slightly furrowed. 



WOOD. Light; soft; weak; coarse-grained; heartwood dark 

 brown; farily durable; unimportant. 



SILVICAL CHARACTERS. Upper Sonoran to Alpine 

 zones; along streams or on moist to dry hillsides. 



Russian-olive 

 Elaeagnus angustifolia L. 



An introduced shrub or small tree which has become estab- 

 lished in parts of the region. Hardy, very drouth and alkaline 

 resistant and much planted as a dry area ornamental and for 

 windbreaks. Characterized by lanceolate, silvery-scurfy leaves; 

 silvery and often spiny branches; and yellow, silvery-scurfy, 

 drupaceous fruit, ]/2 inch in diameter. 



[329] 



