Autumn olive is the small, round-to-oval, scarlet berry — dusted with tiny silver and brown scales — that ripens in dense clusters on a hardy, silver-leaved shrub of the oleaster family. Astringent and tart when unripe but pleasantly sweet-tart and juicy when fully red, it is one of the richest known fruit sources of the red carotenoid lycopene, and is foraged for jams, fruit leather, sauces and juice far more often than it is eaten raw.