Mediterranean buckthorn

Rhamnus alaternus is an evergreen shrub 1–5 metres (3 ft 3 in – 16 ft 5 in) high. The stems have reddish bark and pubescent young branches, rounded and compact foliage with alternating leaves, 2–6 centimetres (0.79–2.36 in) long, sometimes nearly opposite, oval or lanceolate, leathery, shiny green, yellowish-green underneath. The small fragrant flowers are gathered in a short axillary yellow-green raceme. The flowering period extends from February to April. Fruits are obovoidal red-brownish drupes of about 3–4 millimetres (0.12–0.16 in), containing from 2 to 4 seeds. The drupes darken to black when ripe.

This species is widespread in thermophilic evergreen bush and scrubland of the Mediterranean climate regions, from Gran Canaria, Morocco and Portugal in the west, to the Levant in the east, from sea level up to 1,300 m (4,300 ft) elevation.

This species is cultivated as an ornamental garden shrub, valued for its glossy evergreen leaves and red berries. The variegated cultivar 'Argenteovariegata' has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

The specific Latin name alaternus, is from the Latin word for the plant. Its origin is obscure but is often suggested to be of Etruscan or pre-Indo-European Mediterranean origin.