It's ashamed you can't leave long enough at its present site to try layering it as well, by pulling a stem down and pegging it so that it would strike before you severed it. I'd be starting softwood or herbaceous cuttings right now, and keep taking them in various stages of growth. I've found that sometimes WHEN I take and stick cuttings spells success or failure more than what stage the cuttings are in and suspect it has a lot to do with the auxin levels, what vary widely over different seasons..

It is confusing because there are two species of Eleagnus (actually more, but 2 are most important). People talk about the two as though they were the same plant with the same qualities but they are not. Russian Olive (angustifolia) is a tree. It likes moist soil and takes 15 years to flower. It is the fragrant one. It is very beautiful and actually looks like an olive tree. Though it grows untidily -- it is actually not that vigorous -- branches of it turn leafless and die, hence the need for pruning. However, Russian olive (the tree) has shown itself to be a pest in the Western USA because in desert areas it colonizes river banks and crowds out other species. It is not very invasive in the East but has the potential to be so, or so they say. Autumn olive (umbellata) is a shrub. It withstands drought and was planted in the thousands by state governments as "wildlife shelter" in parks and roadsides. It has become a serious pest everywhere, I think, and should not be grown or planted commercially. I love Russian Olive and am ready to defend it in the event it has been unjustly maligned, but I have accepted people's word that it is a potential problem that should never be introduced in wildlife plantings on the East coast as was done in the past. (It goes without saying it should not be planted in the Western US). As to whether it should permanently be banned from home gardens --- I am now an agnostic on this point.

Russian Olive has been identified by the North American Weed Management Association as one of the most serious threats in America. They have published a position paper on the Russian Olive. If you do a google search and type in Russian Olive, you will get many websites from federal and state organizations with information on the invasiveness of this plant. It is a threat to the economy, ecology and environment anywhere it is planted. Please take steps to remove it where you have it planted on your property and take the time to ask stores or nurseries to remove it from their stock where you see it for sale. From the USDA web site: Description: Russian-olive is a small deciduous tree or large thorny shrub in the oleaster family (Elaeagnaceae) that can grow 15 to 30 feet in height. It is generally rounded in shape with loose arrangement of branches. Its stems, buds, and leaves have a dense covering of silvery to rusty scales. Twigs have silvery scales and thorns on the ends. Leaves are simple, alternate, 1-3 inches long, lance-shaped and silvery on both sides. Flowers appear in June and July. They are bell-shaped, single or clustered in the leaf axils, fragrant, yellowish on the inside and silver outside. Olive like fruits are dupe-like, .5 inches long, light green to yellow with silvery scales, hard and fleshy. Plants begin to flower and fruit at three years of age. Reproduction is by seed, sprouting from buds on the root crown and suckering. Habitat: It is found along fields, open areas, grasslands, stream banks, lakeshores, roadsides, and urban areas, sandy and bare mineral soils. Seedlings are tolerant of shade and it thrives in a variety of soil and moisture conditions, including bare mineral substrates. Distribution: This species is reported from states shaded on Plants Database map. It is reported invasive in AZ, CA, CO, CT, DE, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS, MD, MI, MN, MT, NC, NE, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OK, OR, PA, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA, VT, WA, and WI . Ecological Impacts: This invasive plant can interfere with natural plant succession, nutrient cycling, and tax water reserves. Because Russian-olive is capable of fixing nitrogen in its roots, it can grow on bare, mineral substrates and dominate riparian vegetation where over-story cottonwoods have died. Although Russian-olive provides a plentiful source of edible fruits for birds, ecologists have found that bird species richness is actually higher in riparian areas dominated by native vegetation. Thank you very much Troy and Lori Zaumseil Citizens Against Noxious Weeds Invading the North

I've killed dozens of those things over the years. Cut the tree down, leaving as short a stump as feasible, then take a drill with as large a diameter bit you have - say 1/2 inch, and drill 3-5 holes depending on the diameter of the trunk, then drizzle in roundup concentrate, trying to fill most the holes. The Roundup gets neutralized pretty quickly and won't spread to the aspens. Thats for a biggish one. For those annoying 1" diameter ones that seem to pop up everywhere, just cut it off at the base with loppers, then keep an eye on it and keep whacking it back to the ground. 4-5 times will kill it.