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Peppertree

Schinus

Also called Peppertrees

Peppertree
Photo: Forest & Kim Starr, CC BY 3.0

Schinus is a genus of flowering trees and tall shrubs in the cashew family, native to South America, including the Peruvian pepper tree and Brazilian pepper tree. Commonly grown members are sun-loving, drought-tolerant trees, and some species are invasive outside their native range.

Family
Anacardiaceae (Cashew family)
Grows as
Tree
Light
Full sun
Water
Water young trees regularly until established, then allow the soil to dry out between waterings.
Soil
Well-drained soil; tolerates poor, sandy or rocky soils.
Temperature
Hardy in warm climates; protect young plants below about 0 °C.
How easy
Easy
Safety
Mildly toxic: Sap and leaves can cause skin irritation and allergic reactions in sensitive people.

About

Schinus is a genus of flowering trees and tall shrubs in the sumac family, Anacardiaceae. Members of the genus are commonly known as pepper trees. The Peruvian pepper tree (Schinus molle) is the source of the spice known as pink peppercorn.

The species of Schinus are native to South America, ranging from Peru and northeastern Brazil to southern South America. Some species (e.g. Schinus terebinthifolia) have become an invasive species outside their natural habitats. Schinus polygama, although less well known, is also potentially weedy in mesic areas.

Other Schinus plants

Peruvian peppertree · Brazilian Peppertree

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Schinus by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.

The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.

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