Notelaea ovata
Plant Number: 4Common Name: Native Olive, Forest Olive
Scientific Name: Notelaea ovata
Derivation of name
Notelaea - Greek elaia referring to olive tree
ovata - from Latin for 'ovate' referring to the leaf shape
Description
Low spreading shrub to one metre, can survive on rocky sandstone ridges and slopes
Stiff, leathery ovate leaves, opposite to 14 cm, but commonly much smaller than this
3mm flowers all year round
Black drooping fruit to 10mm with a solitary seed
Very drought tolerant
Human uses
Manna and lerp found on the leaves, collected
summer to early autumn
Acknowledgment: Mangroves to Mountains
Photo Credit: Janis Cossill