Chinese Privet
Ligustrum sinense
An invasive shrub that forms dense thickets and displaces other vegetation. Found in moist forests, especially alluvial bottomlands, and also in a wide range of other forests, woodlands, glade edges, etc. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you
-85
Severe harm
Not native to Alabama. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 71%
- Height
- 6½–15 feet
- Spread
- 10–15 feet
- Light
- Dappled sunlight, Full sun, Partial shade
- Soil moisture
- Dry to moist
Do not plant. Listed invasive in Alabama.
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At a glance
- Life cycle
- Woody perennial
- Leaves
- Semi-evergreen or evergreen
- Bloom
- Late spring
Recorded in 64 Alabama counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement.
Habitats
Moist forests; floodplain and bottomland forests; forests and woodlands.
Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there. All habitats
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Alabama. Shared habitat, not food. 169 animals.
- Common NighthawkChordeiles minor
- Eastern KingbirdTyrannus tyrannus
- Great Horned OwlBubo virginianus
- Mourning DoveZenaida macroura
- Red-tailed HawkButeo jamaicensis
- Sharp-shinned HawkAccipiter striatus
- Turkey VultureCathartes aura
- Blue JayCyanocitta cristata
- Blue-gray GnatcatcherPolioptila caerulea
- Cedar WaxwingBombycilla cedrorum
- Cooper's HawkAccipiter cooperii
- Double-crested CormorantPhalacrocorax auritus
- Downy WoodpeckerPicoides pubescens
- European StarlingSturnus vulgaris
- Hooded MerganserLophodytes cucullatus
- Northern CardinalCardinalis cardinalis
- Northern FlickerColaptes auratus
- Northern MockingbirdMimus polyglottos
- Purple FinchCarpodacus purpureus
- Tufted TitmouseBaeolophus bicolor
- Yellow-breasted ChatIcteria virens
- American CrowCorvus brachyrhynchos
- American RobinTurdus migratorius
- Belted KingfisherMegaceryle alcyon
Ecological relationships
Who uses this plant?
31CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AL
Genus host records with ranges including AL · Ligustrum
- Acronicta impletaYellow-Haired Dagger
- Acronicta oblinitaSmeared Dagger
- Aethalura intertextaFour-Barred Gray
- Apantesis naisNais Tiger Moth
- Argyrotaenia velutinanaRed-Banded Leafroller Moth, Jack Pine Tube Moth
- Automeris ioIo Moth
- Callosamia prometheaPromethea Silkmoth, Promethea Moth
- Ceratomia undulosaWaved Sphinx
- Cerma cerinthaTufted Bird-Dropping Moth, Cherry Agate
- Citheronia regalisRoyal Walnut Moth, Hickory Horned Devil
Show all 31
- Dolba hyloeusPawpaw Sphinx
- Eacles imperialisImperial Moth, Imperial Spiny Caterpillar
- Ectropis crepusculariaThe Small Engrailed, Saddleback Looper
- Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
- Harrisimemna trisignataHarris's Three-Spot
- Hymenia perspectalisSpotted Beet Webworm
- Hypena scabraGreen Cloverworm Bomolocha, Black Snout
- Hyphantria cuneaFall Webworm
- Manduca rusticaRustic Sphinx
- Orgyia leucostigmaWhite-Marked Tussock Moth
- Paleacrita vernataSpring Cankerworm Moth
- Palpita quadristigmalisFour-Spotted Palpita, Privet Moth
- Paonias myopsSmall-Eyed Sphinx
- Papilio glaucusEastern Tiger Swallowtail
- Podosesia syringaeLilac Borer Moth, Ash Borer
- Sphinx franckiiFranck's Sphinx
- Sphinx kalmiaeFawn Sphinx, Laurel Sphinx
- Spilosoma virginicaVirginian Tiger Moth, Yellow Woolybear Moth, Yellow Bear
- Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformisEvergreen Bagworm Moth
- Astala confederata
- Desmia tages
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
—Specialist beesPollen specialists
—BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claimGrowing and identification
Plant details
- Family
- Oleaceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 6a–9b
- Soil pH
- Alkaline
- Flower color
- White
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Choose a locally appropriate native alternative. Established plants spread by suckers and bird-dispersed seeds. NC State Extension
Growing sources and scope
- Flower color · “White” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Hardiness · “Zones 6a–9b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Height · “6.5–15 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Fire Effects Information System: Ligustrum sinense differs)
- Leaves · “Semi-evergreen or evergreen” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Life cycle · “Woody perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Light · “Dappled sunlight (shade through upper canopy all day); Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- primary_flower_color · “white” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Soil · “Dry; Moist (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Soil pH · “Alkaline” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Spread · “10–15 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Recognizing it
Small opposite leaves, hairy young stems, white flower clusters, and dark fleshy fruit. Identification source
Also known as
Privet Hedge
Conservation status
| Alabama rank | SNA |
|---|---|
| Global rank | GNR |
| AL status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Sources
- Alabama Plant Atlas
- Alabama Invasive Plant Council list
- USDA PLANTS
- FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Weakley), phone app (app page)
- FloraQuest: South Central (Weakley), phone app (app page)
- NatureServe Explorer
- Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
- Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)
- Narango, Tallamy & Shropshire 2020, Few keystone plant genera support the majority of Lepidoptera species, Nature Communications
- NC State Extension