Scientific name: Elaeagnus umbellata
Description: perennial shrubs that often grow in dense thickets of scraggly looking bushes, up to fifteen feet tall. Has a silvery appearance. The leaves grow alternately on short stems and are elliptic, tapering at both ends; have wavy but untoothed edges, and the undersides are lighter green. Autumn olives are one of the earliest shrubs to flower in the spring; the fragrant flowers are white to yellow, hang from the leaf axils, and have four petals joined at their bases to form a tube. The fruits are oval to round drupes, ripening to red, about 1/3 inch long, and covered with silver speckles. Each fruit contains a single, elongated, soft seed that is lined along its length; chewing and swallowing the edible seed is optional.
Not an olive but an actual fruit.
Sources
Refer back to the Sources post to see the exact books that I used!
Adventures in Edible Plant Foraging
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