Ligustrum lucidum Bokrascreen

Ligustrum lucidum Bokrascreen or Green Screen is a variety of Chinese Privet or Glossy Privet, that is interesting for its compactness and ornamental appeal. Its medium size makes it easy to use as a hedge, requiring only annual pruning. In spring, it produces highly decorative orange leaves, which then turn bright green. Its evergreen foliage is ornamental all year round and particularly highlights its white and fragrant summer flowers. Small decorative black-blue berries follow until winter. It is easy to grow in most well-drained soils, thrives in full sun or partial shade, and its moderate hardiness makes it suitable for regions without harsh winters.

The Privet (Ligustrum) is one of the 26 genera in the Olive family (Oleaceae), which, alongside the Olive tree, includes many ornamental plants often with a fragrance, such as Jasmines, Lilacs, and Osmanthus. Mainly native to China, but also found in Japan and Korea, Ligustrum lucidum forms a small, upright tree that reaches a height of 5 to 10 m. Its foliage is evergreen, carried by smooth branches with brown lenticels. The oval leaves are 7 to 14 cm long, and two to three times less in width, and are a shiny dark green. The white flowers are borne in upright clusters, 12 to 20 cm long, and then develop into oblong, bluish-black fruits about a centimetre long.
Bokrascreen or Green Screen is a horticultural variety that won a silver medal at the Dutch professional exhibition GrootGroenPlus in 2023 due to its many qualities. It is of medium size, better suited to small urban gardens than the botanical species. This Privet reaches a height of 2 m and a width of 1.30 m in 5 years, and at maturity, after ten years, approximately 3 m in height and 1.50 m in spread, without pruning. It tolerates hedge trimming very well, making it easy to shape into a hedge and maintain at a height of 2 m as required. In spring, the young shoots are particularly attractive with their orange hue, which gradually turns bronze before becoming green. The mahogany-red young branches are also very ornamental. The foliage takes on a bright green colour, lighter than the species, with a characteristic glossy appearance. The oval leaves, with pointed tips, are folded in a V shape along the midrib and gracefully arching. They are opposite-decussate, meaning they are face to face on the branch to which a short petiole attaches them, and are offset by 90° at each level. They are evergreen, therefore decorative throughout the year and provide a backdrop for the flowers from June onwards. The panicles of small cream-white flowers are clearly visible against the darker foliage and bloom until August. They are pleasantly fragrant and attract pollinating insects, and later attract birds when they produce small blue-black fruits in autumn (provided the plant is not pruned during this period). These are decorative and persist until winter if spared by birds, but are toxic to humans. This moderately hardy Chinese Privet, once established, can withstand short frosts of around -15°C in well-drained soil. It adapts to a wide range of soils, neutral, acidic, or alkaline, and once well-established, tolerates summer drought relatively well.

The Green Screen Privet brings a refreshing look and offers new uses as its compactness allows it to be planted in a large container where it can be protected in regions with harsh winters. Plant it in mixed borders or in a multi-species hedge, mixing it with other ornamental species. The effect achieved will be much more beautiful than a monospecific hedge and will be a real asset in a small garden where space is limited. You can then combine it with Elaeagnus (or Oleasters), which, depending on the variety, offer dark green, grey, or variegated leaves with yellow or even white, as well as a late, discreet, but pleasantly fragrant flowering. Euonymus japonicus 'Président Gautier' is a Spindle tree that also offers beautiful white variegation on bright green foliage. Of course, Photinia fraseri 'Red Robin' remains a must-have for this type of hedge, just avoid planting it right next to your Privet so that it doesn't detract attention with its intense red spring shoots.