The Underappreciated Autumn Olive

Autumn Olive (Elaeagnus umbellata)

I love these tiny, sweet smelling clusters of flowers that cover almost the entire plant! These little flowers don't actually turn into olives at all, but a tiny red or sometimes a golden berry. They are edible and are said to have many health benefits if you can get them before the birds do!

Health Benefits

If you're interested in some of the reported health benefits of this wonder berry, keep reading. It takes very little research to find the following information to get your mouths watering! 

The flowers are astringent, cardiac and stimulant. The seeds are used as a stimulant in the treatment of coughs. The expressed oil from the seeds is used in the treatment of pulmonary affections. The fruit of many members of this genus is a very rich source of vitamins and minerals, especially in vitamins A, C and E, flavanoids and other bio-active compounds. It is also a fairly good source of essential fatty acids, which is fairly unusual for a fruit. It is being investigated as a food that is capable of reducing the incidence of cancer and also as a means of halting or reversing the growth of cancers.


The ripe fruit can be eaten fresh out of hand, made into jellies, pies and fruit leather, to name a few. When under-ripe the fruit has astringent qualities, and in traditional medicine, the flowers are used as a cardiac tonic, for their astringent qualities, and as a stimulant. The seeds are said to be good for coughs, and the oil from the seeds is used to treat afflictions of the lungs.
The berries can be dried and stored to use in fruit teas. The flowers and leaves are also said to be safe to use in teas but I couldn't find as much information on their use. 
Anytime you are trying something new, you should proceed with caution, make sure you have identified the plant correctly and use your best judgment on eating wild plants.

It is on the invasive species list in some states so make sure you don't live in one of those areas before planting but you can often find this hardy plant already growing by the roadside. So if it's already there and you can't plant locally, I say you're doing nature a favor by picking them and eating them yourself before the wildlife spreads them more, right?