Schinus molle L., Anacardiaceae

Click on an image for links to BIGGER PICTURES

Present on Pacific Islands?  yes

Primarily a threat at high elevations?  no

Risk assessment results:  High risk, score: 10 (Go to the risk assessment)

Common name(s): [more details]

English: California pepper tree, pepper tree, pepperina, Peruvian mastictree, Peruvian peppertree

French: faux poivrier, molée des jardins, poivrier d'Amérique

Spanish: aguaribai, molle, pimientero de perú, pimientero falso, pirul

Habit:  tree

Description:  "Trees 5-15 m tall, with slender drooping branches forming a spreading crown. Leaves with 7-20 pairs of opposite or alternate leaflets, these narrowly lanceolate to linear-lanceolate, 1.5-5 (-6) cm long, 0.2-0.7 cm wide, terminal leaflet smaller than lateral ones, glabrous to sparsely puberulent, margins entire to remotely serrate. Sepals deltate, ca. 0.4 mm long; petals yellowish-white, narrowly ovate, 1.5-2 mm long; styles and stigmas 3. Drupes lavender to pink, 6-8 mm in diameter" (Wagner et al., 1999; p. 198).

Habitat/ecology:  "Forests, grass- and shrubland, riverbanks, coastal dunes and beaches.  This fast growing and drought resistant tree grows in elevations up to 2,100 m in Kenya.  It is freely coppicing and forms extensive species-poor stands that shade out all native vegetation.  Since the soil under the canopy remains bare and lacks a herbaceous ground flora, erosion can be accelerated in stands growing on slopes or near streams"  (Weber, 2003; p. 388). 

Dry forest and moist areas up to at least 4000 ft. elevation in Hawai‘i. Tolerant of poor soils and poor drainage. Withstands drought well. In Australia, "it is naturalised in riparian vegetation near Warwick (south-east Queensland) and appears to be spreading. It may have pest potential in dry temperate to tropical zones, primarily along the banks of watercourses. It appears tolerant of poor soils." (Csurhes & Edwards, 1998; p. 195). In New Zealand, "waste places, especially in coastal areas. Pepper tree is widely cultivated, especially in warmer coastal areas, and spontaneous plants occasionally occur in the vicinity of planted trees" (Webb et al., 1988; p. 110).

Propagation:  Seed, bird-dispersed.

Native range:  "Southern Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, and northern Argentina and widely cultivated elsewhere; naturalized and cultivated throughout the tropics and subtropics"  (Staples & Herbst, 2005; p. 106).

Presence:

Pacific
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Chile (offshore islands) Juan Fernández Islands	Isla Más a Tierra (Robinson Crusoe Island)	introduced invasive cultivated	Atkinson, Rachel/Sawyer, John (2011)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) Floreana Group	Floreana Island	introduced cultivated	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
Ecuador (Galápagos Islands) San Cristóbal Group	San Cristóbal Island	introduced cultivated	Charles Darwin Foundation (2008)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Hawai‘i (Big) Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 198)
State of Hawaii Hawaiian Islands	Maui Island	introduced invasive cultivated	Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. (1999) (p. 198) East Maui

Pacific Rim
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
Australia Australia (continental)	Queensland	introduced invasive cultivated	Csurhes, S./Edwards, R. (1998) (p. 195) Naturalized
Chile (continental) Chile	Chile (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
Ecuador (Mainland) Ecuador	Ecuador (Republic of) (continental)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)
New Zealand New Zealand	New Zealand (country)	introduced invasive cultivated	Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. (1988) (p. 110)
Perú Perú	Perú (Republic of)	native	U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. (2011)

Also reported from
Country/Terr./St. & Island group	Location	Cited status & Cited as invasive & Cited as cultivated & Cited as aboriginal introduction?	Reference & Comments
South Africa South Africa	South Africa (Republic of)	introduced invasive	Henderson, Lesley (1995) (p. 177)

Control: 

Physical:  "Seedlings and saplings can be dug out".

Chemical:  "Larger trees are cut and the cut stumps treated with herbicide.  The drill-fill method is also effective.  Follow-up treatments are necessary to control regrowth.  Fruit bearing trees should be removed first to prevent seed dispersal"  (Weber, 2003; p. 388).

Additional information:
Information from the World Agroforestry Centre's AgroForestryTree Database.
Photos and other information from Chileflora.
Information from the USDA Tropical Tree Seed Manual (PDF format).

Additional online information about Schinus molle is available from the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR).

Information about Schinus molle as a weed (worldwide references) may be available from the Global Compendium of Weeds (GCW).

Taxonomic information about Schinus molle may be available from the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN).

References:

Atkinson, Rachel/Sawyer, John. 2011. Naturalized species in the Juan Fernández Archipelago, Chile. Unpublished spreadsheet.

Belov, Michail. 2011. Chileflora (online resource).

Charles Darwin Foundation. 2008. Database inventory of introduced plant species in the rural and urban zones of Galapagos. Charles Darwin Foundation, Galapagos, Ecuador.

Charles Darwin Research Station. 2005. CDRS Herbarium records.

Csurhes, S./Edwards, R. 1998. Potential environmental weeds in Australia: Candidate species for preventative control. Canberra, Australia. Biodiversity Group, Environment Australia. 208 pp.

Henderson, Lesley. 1995. Plant invaders of Southern Africa. Plant Protection Research Institute Handbook No. 5, Agriculture Research Council, ARC/LNR, Pretoria, South Africa. 177 pp.

Meyer, Jean-Yves. 2000. Preliminary review of the invasive plants in the Pacific islands (SPREP Member Countries). In: Sherley, G. (tech. ed.). Invasive species in the Pacific: A technical review and draft regional strategy. South Pacific Regional Environment Programme, Samoa. 190 pp.

Staples, George W./Herbst, Derral R. 2005. A tropical garden flora: plants cultivated in the Hawaiian Islands and other tropical places. Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 908 pp.

U.S. Dept. Agr., Agr. Res. Serv. 2011. National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Online searchable database.

Wagner, Warren L./Herbst, Derral R./Sohmer, S. H. 1999. Manual of the flowering plants of Hawaii. Revised edition. Bernice P. Bishop Museum special publication. University of Hawai‘i Press/Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu. 1919 pp. (two volumes).

Webb, C. J./Sykes, W. R./Garnock-Jones, P. J. 1988. Flora of New Zealand, Volume IV: Naturalised pteridophytes, gymnosperms, dicotyledons. Botany Division, DSIR, Christchurch. 1365 pp.

Weber, Ewald. 2003. Invasive plants of the World. CABI Publishing, CAB International, Wallingford, UK. 548 pp.