Ligustrum ovalifolium, also known as oval-leaved privet, is a semi-evergreen shrub in the privet genus Ligustrum. The species is native to Japan. It is sometimes known as Japanese privet. The plant flowers in midsummer, the abundant white blooms producing a unique pungent fragrance, unpleasant to some. Flowering starts after 330 growing degree days. The fruits, borne in clusters, are small purple to black drupes, poisonous for humans but readily eaten by many birds. In favorable growing conditions, individual shrubs may produce thousands of fruits. Privet hedges need to be trimmed several times during a growing season, in order to maintain their shape. Regularly trimmed plants do not produce flowers or fruit. Privet is used as a food plant by the larvae.