Side by side
Snowberry or wild privet? How to tell them apart
Symphoricarpos albus · Ligustrum vulgare
How to tell them apart – snowberry: dense shrub with small, round leaves and white berries that pop when you step on them; wild privet: narrower leaves, white panicles and black berries.
How do you recognise them?
- Snowberry
- Dense shrub with small, round leaves and white berries that pop when you step on them.
- Wild privet
- Native shrub with narrow, opposite leaves, white flower panicles and black berries.
- Compared with snowberry: narrower leaves, white panicles and black berries.
| Snowberry | Wild privet | |
|---|---|---|
| Leaves | Opposite, 2–5 cm, round to oval, untoothed (sometimes lobed on vigorous shoots), blue-green. | Opposite, lance-shaped, 3–6 cm, untoothed; drops during the course of the winter. |
| Flowering | Small pink bells from June to September, busy with bees and bumblebees (June–September). | White, strongly scented panicles in June–July (June–July). |
| Fruit | White, spongy berries (1–1.5 cm) that hang on into winter; poisonous. | Glossy black berries that last all winter; poisonous. |
| Bark | Thin, brown twigs that peel in strips. | Grey and smooth. |
| Shape and height | Shrub, 1–2 m | Shrub, 2–4 m |
| Site | Sun to shade, any garden soil, dry to wet | Sun or partial shade, any garden soil, normal |
| Native to Belgium | No, naturalised | Yes |
| Good for bees, butterflies and birds | Yes, for bees | Yes, for bees, butterflies and birds |
| Poisonous to people and pets | Yes, take care with children and pets | Yes, take care with children and pets |
| Pruning months | February–March | May–June, August–September and November–March |
What does it mean for your garden?
- Snowberry is poisonous to people and pets: take care with children and animals.
- Wild privet is poisonous to people and pets: take care with children and animals.
- Wild privet is native: it feeds more insects and birds than a non-native species. If in doubt, choose this one.
Read on
- Plant profile: Snowberry
- Plant profile: Wild privet
- Snowberry: when and how to prune
- Wild privet: when and how to prune
- Identification key: the question that separates them
Also looks like
This comparison is compiled from the Bladwijzer species pages.