The False Olive is a robust, evergreen shrub or small tree with an attractive, weeping form. Older plants often become woody but can be pruned hard to regain the dense foliage that makes it such an effective screen and windbreak. Cream-white flowers hang in heavy bunches bringing in hordes of bees, butterflies and other insects – along with the birds that feast on them. It is thus popular with bee farmers. Flowers grow in terminal sprays (tips of branches) each large ball is made up of a mass of tiny creamy-white, honey-scented flowers from August to January; spring summer Leaves are long, narrow and tapering, grey-green above, paler green to white below; mid-brown bark is attractively fissured and flaking. The False Olive will rapidly reach full height. Roots: non-aggressive. B. saligna is an excellent choice for new gardens as its rapid growth provides quick shade, a privacy screen and protection from wind - and brings in the pollinators. Provincial distribution: Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Northern Cape, North West, Western Cape