Olive Martini Elaeagnus

Light Needs

Part Shade to Full Sun

(4+ Hours Direct Sun)

Mature Height

10-15 Feet

Mature Spread

10-15 Feet

Growing Zones

6 to 9

Olive Martini Elaeagnus is a unique and beautiful shrub with olive-green evergreen leaves edged in golden yellow. In the spring, silvery new growth adds another color phase. Elaeagnus × ebbingei ‘Viveleg’ develops into a dense, upright shrub about 10 to 15 feet tall and wide, giving it enough size for substantial screening and large landscape beds. The variegation persists through winter, while small, highly fragrant cream-white flowers may appear from late summer into fall. 

Olive Martini originated as a naturally occurring mutation found in Toulouse, France, and was selected for its stable variegated foliage and broad evergreen habit. Once established, it handles heat, periods of drought, and lower-fertility soils well. Its size makes it useful as a privacy screen, tall hedge, background shrub, or broad specimen. It can be kept more formal with regular clipping or allowed to develop its naturally full, rounded framework.

Olive Martini Elaeagnus Care

Grow Olive Martini Elaeagnus in full sun to partial shade, with at least several hours of direct light supporting denser branching and stronger foliage color. It adapts to clay, loam, silt, and leaner garden soils as long as drainage is good. A mildly acidic to mildly alkaline soil pH, roughly 6.0 to 7.5, is suitable.

Water deeply during the first growing season, allowing the upper soil layer to begin drying before irrigating again. Established plants tolerate considerably drier conditions and generally need supplemental water only during extended dry periods. Apply a balanced slow-release shrub fertilizer in early spring if growth is weak or the soil is low in nutrients. Mulch around the root zone to moderate moisture loss, keeping the mulch away from the main stems.

Prune as needed after active spring growth to maintain the desired height and width, or leave the shrub largely untrimmed for a broader natural screen. Formal hedges can be clipped periodically during the growing season, and occasional thinning of older interior branches helps maintain good branching throughout the plant. Avoid repeated heavy late-season pruning if you want to retain the small fragrant flowers that develop later in the year.

Olive Martini Elaeagnus Spacing

Space Olive Martini Elaeagnus about 6 to 8 feet apart on center for a dense privacy hedge, and 12 to 15 feet apart if individual shrubs should reach a broad natural size. For container culture, use a heavy pot at least 24 to 30 inches wide with excellent drainage, and expect periodic root management as the shrub matures.

Olive Martini Elaeagnus Companion Plants

Spirea and switchgrass make compatible landscape companions for sunny, well-drained sites. Spirea contributes a lower flowering layer and switchgrass adds upright texture near the base of the large evergreen canopy. In a large container, purslane can trail along the rim while sharing the same preference for sun, warmth, and soil that dries somewhat between waterings.

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