''Olea paniculata'', commonly known as the native olive, is a plant of the genus '' Olea'' and a relative of the

olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'', meaning 'European olive' in Latin, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as ''Olea europaea'' ...

. It grows natively in Pakistan and southwestern China (

Yunnan Yunnan , () is a landlocked province in the southwest of the People's Republic of China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 48.3 million (as of 2018). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the ...

) through tropical Asia to Australia (

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

and

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

) and the Pacific islands of New Caledonia,

Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of no ...

and

Lord Howe Island Lord Howe Island (; formerly Lord Howe's Island) is an irregularly crescent-shaped volcanic remnant in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand, part of the Australian state of New South Wales. It lies directly east of mainland ...

Description

It grows as a bushy tree to , often with a sparse canopy. The trunk has smooth grey-brown bark and reaches a maximum diameter of with some buttressing. The shiny green ovate to elliptical leaves measure in length, and in width, and have a pointed (acuminate) end. The blue-black fruit are oval and measure 0.8–1.2 (0.3–0.5 in) cm long. They are ripe from May to September. It resembles the introduced and weedy African olive ''Olea europaea'' subsp. ''cuspidata'', but the latter lacks ''O. paniculatas small depressions between the main and secondary veins on the back of the leaf. The introduced species is found in disturbed areas such as roadsides and waterways.

Taxonomy

One of many species first described by Robert Brown in his 1810 work '' Prodromus Florae Novae Hollandiae'', it still bears its original binomial name. Other common names include Australian olive, pigeonberry ash, maulwood, and clove berry. In Chinese, it is called 腺叶木犀榄 (). The specific name is derived from the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...

''panicula'' "tuft", from the arrangement of flowers.

Distribution and habitat

''Olea paniculata'' is found from North East Queensland to the vicinity of the

Hunter Region The Hunter Region, also commonly known as the Hunter Valley, is a region of New South Wales, Australia, extending from approximately to north of Sydney. It contains the Hunter River and its tributaries with highland areas to the north and ...

. In Australia it is found near watercourses in dry rainforests. Outside Australia it is found in

province in southwestern China, where it occurs in sheltered wetter valleys in altitude, as well as India, Indonesia, Kashmir, Malaysia, Nepal, New Guinea, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. On Lord Howe Island it is widespread below around elevation. It is also found on New Caledonia and Vanuatu.

Ecology

The fruit are consumed by the

Australian king parrot The Australian king parrot (''Alisterus scapularis'') is a species of parrot endemic to eastern Australia ranging from Cooktown in Queensland to Port Campbell in Victoria. Found in humid and heavily forested upland regions of the eastern port ...

, brown cuckoo-dove, topknot pigeon, rose-crowned fruit-dove, wompoo fruit-dove,

white-headed pigeon The white-headed pigeon (''Columba leucomela'') is a pigeon native to the east coast of Australia. Taxonomy and systematics The pigeon family is a group of stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills with a worldwide distribu ...

, green catbird and regent bowerbird in Australia.

Uses

It is a fast

pioneer species Pioneer species are hardy species that are the first to colonize barren environments or previously biodiverse steady-state ecosystems that have been disrupted, such as by wildfire. Pioneer flora Some lichens grow on rocks without soil, ...

on sunny protected sites, but needs well drained soil for good growth. It is a butterfly host plant whose black fruit attracts birds. The fruit was traditionally eaten by

Aboriginal Australians Aboriginal Australians are the various Indigenous peoples of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland and many of its islands, such as Tasmania, Fraser Island, Hinchinbrook Island, the Tiwi Islands, and Groote Eylandt, but excluding the T ...

.Cribb, A.B. & Cribb, J.W. (1975) Wild Food in Australia. Sydney: Collins.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3013067

paniculata A panicle is a much-branched inflorescence. (softcover ). Some authors distinguish it from a compound spike inflorescence, by requiring that the flowers (and fruit) be pedicellate (having a single stem per flower). The branches of a panicle are of ...

Lamiales of Australia Flora of Queensland Trees of the Indian subcontinent Trees of China Trees of Thailand Trees of Malesia Trees of New Guinea Trees of New Caledonia Trees of Vanuatu Flora of New South Wales Flora of Lord Howe Island Plants described in 1810 Bushfood