Elaeagnus commutata  

Silver Berry

Deciduous shrub from a strong rhizome; stems silvery- to brownish-scaled, branched, old branches dark greyish-red, young twigs brown or green, 1-4 m tall. Leaves are short-stalked, silvery-scaly on both surfaces, wavy-margined. Produces silvery-mealy berries. 

Mesic to dry sand and gravel bars, meadows, shrublands and forest edges in the steppe and montane zones. 

Great for borders/ privacy in yards, will grow tall and spread through rhizomes. Plant somewhere permanently. 

The tough fibrous bark was used by the Nlaka'pmx, Okanagan, St'at'imc, and Secwepemc to make bags, baskets, ropes, and other woven materials. Okanagan traders considered one 13-cm thick bundle was worth one blanket. The silver berries were strung for beads.