Latin Name
Hippophae rhamnoides
Family: Elaeagnaceae
Common Names
Sea buckthorn, Siberian pineapple, Sea Berry, Sandthorn or Swallowthorn.
Habitat
It is native from northwestern Europe, through central Asia to the Altai Mountains to western and northern China and the northern Himalayas.
Historic Uses
Used in ancient Greece as a fodder for horses to promote weight gain and a shiny coat. In fact, the generic Latin name “Hippophae” literally translates to “shiny horse”. Sea buckthorn has been used for centuries in both Europe and Asia as food; and for its pharmaceutical properties.
Anecdotal reports indicate sea buckthorn was used in ancient times to:
- Lower fever, reduce inflammation, counteract toxicity and abscesses, and clean the lungs.
- Treat colds and coughs.
- Treat tumours and growths, especially of the stomach and the oesophagus.
Current Uses
Functional Food
Juice from sea buckthorn berries is a common drink in many parts of Asia and Europe. The juice is very high in protein, vitamins C and E, and organic acids. The leaves, either fresh or dried, can be steeped to yield a nutritional tea. The leaves, young branches and fruit pulp can be used as animal fodder.
Medicinal
Topical application of sea buckthorn oil has been reported for skin therapy including sun, heat, chemical and radiation burns, eczema and poorly healing wounds. Russian cosmonauts used sea buckthorn cream for protection from cosmic radiation. Oil from the sea buckthorn fruit is rich in vitamin E, carotenoids, phytosterols and essential fatty acids, all of which have beneficial medicinal properties for the treatment of internal and topical maladies.
Agronomic and Environmental
Sea buckthorn is a remarkably hardy bush that rapidly develops an extensive root system capable of fixing nitrogen. Thus, it is suitable for growth on marginal soils, eventually improving them to where they can support the growth of other plants. It is quite tolerant of salt-spray adjacent to highways. Sea buckthorn has been used for:
- Soil erosion control and land reclamation projects
- Wildlife habitat enhancement (figure 1) and farm stand protection
- Ornamental bushes
Plant Characteristics
The Sea buckthorns are deciduous shrubs that typically range from 0.5 to 6 m in height with equivalent spread, but may reach up to 18 m in central Asia. The staminate trees are more erect than the spreading pistillate trees. It naturally tends to sucker forming thickets if not properly maintained. They can survive temperatures as low as - 40°C, and are both drought and salt tolerant. Sea buckthorns require full sunlight for good growth and cannot tolerate shady conditions near larger trees. The branches are dense, stiff, and very thorny with both terminal and axillary twig spines.
The linear or lanceolate shaped leaves, which are 3 to 8 cm long and less than 7 mm wide, are dark grey-green on the upper surface and a distinct pale, silvery-grey on the lower surface. Sea buckthorn is dioecious, with separate male and female plants. Flowers emerge prior to the leaves, are localized to the 2nd year-old wood, and occur in small racemes in the leaf axils along the entire length of the branch.
Pollination of the female flowers occurs in mid-May, and is entirely dependent on wind to spread pollen from the male flowers. Fruit ripening occurs about 100 days after pollination. Sea buckthorn fruit can vary in both shape and colour, but are typically globose to egg-shaped berries ranging from yellow to bright orange in colour. The combination of fruit shape and size, together with the contrast between the colour of the fruit and leaves, contributes to the ornamental value of this plant.
© Queen’s Printer for Ontario, 2011.
