Wintergreen olive willow, Elaeagnus ebbingei: care from A-Z

Wintergreen olive willows are not only pretty ornamental plants, but also easy to care for. They can be planted out or kept in pots. Their use as hedge plants is still relatively rare in this country. The sweet scent of their flowers, which appear in autumn, are a welcome source of food for insects. But birds also like the shrub because it offers them protection and ideal breeding grounds.

Location

In order for the wintergreen olive willow to thrive, it ideally needs one

• (wind) protected
• sunny to partially shaded

Location.

Tip: Since the wintergreen olive willow is considered smoke-proof, it is very suitable for the inner-city climate.

floor

The Elaeagnus ebbingei makes no special demands on the soil. In this way, it can cope with soils that have high levels of salt. The plant also tolerates poor soils. Ideally, however, the soil has the following properties:

• sandy to loamy
• fresh to moderately moist
• moderately nutritious
• rich in humus
• permeable

Although the wintergreen olive willow can cope with practically all soils, it does not tolerate heavily compacted and / or waterlogged soils.

plants

Spring is the ideal time to plant Elaeagnus ebbingei. Dig a planting hole of the appropriate size and place the plant in it. Then fill the planting hole with soil and press it down. Finally, water is poured on.

Bucket culture

Since Elaeagnus ebbingei does not like waterlogging at all, you should only use containers with at least one drainage hole in the pail culture. The size of the pot depends on the root ball. It should be about three times the size of the root ball. If the ideal planter is ready, then proceed according to the following instructions:

• Lay a drainage layer made of gravel and / or potsherds at the bottom of the planter
• Cover the drainage layer with soil
• Place the olive willow in the middle of the vessel
• Fill the bucket with soil
• Press the substrate on
• pour on
• Repot

In the bucket culture, March is the ideal time to repot the wintergreen olive willow. However, this maintenance measure is only necessary if the substrate is very deeply rooted or the roots are already growing out of the drainage hole. The new pot should be about three to five centimeters larger than the old one in diameter. Ideally, you should use high-quality potted plant soil with coarse-grained proportions as the substrate. This allows water and nutrients to be stored.

Plant neighbors

The wintergreen olive willow is suitable for group plantings. If it is used as a hedge, you should plan two to three plants per running meter. But it can also be planted as a solitary.

care

The evergreen olive willow does not make any special demands on care. It is important that the soil does not dry out over a long period of time. The plant is also happy to be given fertilizer in spring.

to water

If Elaeagnus ebbingei has to do without water for a long time, the plant sheds its leaves. Therefore, you should make sure that the soil does not dry out completely. In the container culture, you should water the plant regularly and moderately. The optimal time for maintenance is when the substrate has dried on the surface.

Note: In the bucket culture, make sure that the entire substrate is always moistened during watering. If the water only penetrates a few centimeters, the plant can shed its leaves due to the lack of water.

Fertilize

In order to promote growth, you should fertilize the wintergreen olive willow with compost as part of the maintenance in spring. If the evergreen olive willow is kept in the bucket, then you should fertilize the plant every two weeks.

Cut

Elaeagnus ebbingei is very easy on pruning. It even forgives a cut back into the old wood. How you prune the wintergreen olive willow depends on its use. So it is enough in the container culture or with solitary plants in the garden if you

• too long,
• dead or
• disturbing urges

just cut out regularly. In the case of hedge plants, on the other hand, an annual pruning is necessary so that the hedge retains its shape. The ideal time for the cut is in late winter before the new shoots. If you missed this point in time, you should wait until the beginning of August before cutting, as the wintergreen olive willow is popular Birds as breeding grounds serves.

Cut as a ball tree

Elaeagnus ebbingei also looks pretty as a standard stem. You can achieve this shape with a specific cut. To do this, follow the instructions below:

• select strong, straight shoots
• stabilize it with a stick
• Remove side branches except for a few thin shoots
• Gradually cut out the side branches

In the course of time, this creates a stem. In order for the spherical tree to keep its shape, all disruptive shoots are cut regularly.

Overwinter

The evergreen olive willow is hardy to minus 17.8 degrees Celsius (USDA zone 7). Nevertheless, you should protect young plants from frost and cold, because frost resistance only develops over time.
In the container culture, the wintergreen olive willow always needs protection against the cold, as this can penetrate through the walls of the planter to the roots. To ensure that the evergreen olive willow in the bucket survives the cold season well, follow the instructions below:

• Cover the bucket with a plant protection fleece
• Place the plant on a styrofoam plate or on a thick wooden board against the cold "from below"
• Cover the ground with a special cold protection fleece to protect against the cold "from above"

Tip: Since the evergreen olive willow also needs water in the winter in the bucket culture, you should remember when “packing” the plant that you can water it.

Alternatively, the wintergreen olive willow can also overwinter indoors. To do this, it needs frost-free winter quarters. Furthermore, the location should be light, because the plant sheds the leaves in places that are too dark, and it takes quite a long time in spring for the olive willow to sprout again.

Winter care

Since there is no fertilization in winter, the care of the evergreen olive tree is limited to watering in the cold season. Planted specimens or hedges must be watered if there is no rain in winter. In this case, you should water the wintergreen olive oil once a week on a mild, frost-free day when the soil has thawed. In bucket culture, it depends on the "packaging" and the weather. If the plant is well protected from the cold "from above", it must be watered regularly on mild, frost-free days. If rain can penetrate the substrate, the plant only needs watering if it does not.

Multiply

It is easiest to propagate the wintergreen olive willow with cuttings or sinkers.

Propagation with cuttings

Ideal cuttings are usually obtained when cutting. Therefore, when cutting, you should also think about obtaining cuttings. Shoots with a length of about 30 centimeters are optimal for this form of propagation. Once the cutting has been cut, follow the instructions below:

• Remove leaves in the lower third
• Put the cuttings in the soil at the desired location
• alternatively put in a pot with potted plant soil

Tip: In the first few years you should protect the young plant from frost and cold.

Propagation with subsidence

For propagation with sinkers, follow the instructions below:

• Branch or Select a branch that can be pulled to the ground
• Dig a furrow five to ten centimeters deep in the appropriate place
• Pull the sinker into the furrow
• cover with earth
• The tip of the shoot protrudes from the furrow
• weight down with stones
• carefully pour on

If the sinker is rooted, it can be separated from the mother plant and planted in its new location.

Diseases and pests

The evergreen olive willow is extremely robust against diseases and pests. Every now and then it is attacked by scale insects. The greatest danger to the plant is through incorrect care, especially if it has to survive long periods of drought.