{"slug":"schinus-terebinthifolia","scientific_name":"Schinus terebinthifolia","common_names":["Brazilian pepper","Brazilian peppertree","Broad-leaved pepper tree","Christmas berry","Aroeira","Florida holly"],"family":"Anacardiaceae","type":"broadleaf_evergreen","mature_height_m":7,"mature_spread_m":7,"growth_rate":"fast","lifespan_years":35,"hardiness_zones":[9,11],"sun":"full_partial","water":"low","soil":"Light, medium or heavy well-drained soils; tolerates seasonal waterlogging and acidity","native_range":"Native to southern and eastern Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and north-east Argentina; one of the most widespread invasive trees of the subtropics (also spelled S. terebinthifolius).","description":"A dense, multi-stemmed evergreen shrub or small tree of 3 to 10 m (rarely 15 m) with glossy aromatic compound leaves and bright red berries at Christmas that birds spread. In Brazil it is a common, useful native (aroeira) and the source of pink peppercorns. Elsewhere it is a notorious invader: Florida's most widespread invasive plant (Category I and on the state Noxious Weed List), a regional priority weed in New South Wales, listed under South Africa's NEMBA and a High Risk species in Hawaii. Its sap contains urushiol-like compounds that cause rashes and breathing problems.","care":"Do not plant outside its native range. Control seedlings before they fruit at about three years; cut large plants and treat stumps or inject stems, wearing gloves and long sleeves against the sap, and follow up on regrowth. In Florida a biocontrol thrips (Pseudophilothrips ichini) has been released since 2019. Only female plants fruit.","benefits":["birds","drought_tolerant","pollinators","fast_canopy"],"uses":["hedgerow","screening"],"cautions":["invasive_elsewhere","toxic_parts","allergenic_pollen","messy_fruit"],"image_url":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/21/Aroeira-vermelha_%28Schinus_terebinthifolia%29_em_Bag%C3%A9%2C_RS%2C_Brasil._Apresenta_diversos_nomes_tupis_pouco_usados._-_55294784814.jpg","image_credit":"Wikimedia Commons, file Aroeira-vermelha_(Schinus_terebinthifolia)_em_Bagé,_RS,_Brasil._Apresenta_diversos_nomes_tupis_pouco_usados._-_55294784814.jpg (see file page for author and licence)","sources":["https://plant-directory.ifas.ufl.edu/plant-directory/schinus-terebinthifolia","https://www.floridainvasives.org/plant-list/2025-invasive-plant-species/","https://weeds.dpi.nsw.gov.au/Weeds/BroadleafPepperTree","https://www.fdacs.gov/Agriculture-Industry/Pests-and-Diseases/Plant-Pests-and-Diseases/Noxious-Weeds","https://faolex.fao.org/docs/pdf/saf220858.pdf","https://apps.worldagroforestry.org/treedb/AFTPDFS/Schinus_terebinthifolius.PDF","https://www.gbif.org/species/3660419","https://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?taxonid=275940"],"data_note":null,"updated_at":"2026-11-08T01:00:46.205Z","page_url":"https://treerm.org/trees/schinus-terebinthifolia","markdown_url":"https://treerm.org/trees/schinus-terebinthifolia.md","regions":[{"country":"AR","region":null,"locality":null,"status":"native","note":"North-east Argentina","source_url":"https://www.gbif.org/species/3660419"},{"country":"BR","region":"BA","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://www.gbif.org/species/3660419"},{"country":"BR","region":"RS","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://www.gbif.org/species/3660419"},{"country":"BR","region":"SP","locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://www.gbif.org/species/3660419"},{"country":"PY","region":null,"locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://www.gbif.org/species/3660419"},{"country":"UY","region":null,"locality":null,"status":"native","note":null,"source_url":"https://www.gbif.org/species/3660419"},{"country":"US","region":"CA","locality":null,"status":"adapted","note":"Introduced per WCVP","source_url":"https://www.gbif.org/species/3660419"},{"country":"AU","region":"NSW","locality":null,"status":"invasive","note":"Regional Priority Weed: Eradication in the Hunter, Containment on the North Coast (exclusion zone in Bellingen, Clarence Valley, Nambucca, Port Macquarie-Hastings; core infestation in Tweed, Byron, Lismore, Ballina and others); should not be sold in parts of NSW","source_url":"https://weeds.dpi.nsw.gov.au/Weeds/BroadleafPepperTree"},{"country":"MU","region":null,"locality":null,"status":"invasive","note":"Introduced per WCVP; invasive on Indian Ocean islands","source_url":"https://www.gbif.org/species/3660419"},{"country":"US","region":"HI","locality":null,"status":"invasive","note":"Introduced and invasive per WCVP; HPWRA High Risk","source_url":"https://www.gbif.org/species/3660419"},{"country":"US","region":"TX","locality":null,"status":"invasive","note":"Introduced per WCVP; invasive on the Gulf coast","source_url":"https://www.gbif.org/species/3660419"},{"country":"ZA","region":null,"locality":null,"status":"invasive","note":"NEMBA 2020: Category 3 in Free State, Gauteng, North West, Northern Cape and Western Cape","source_url":"https://faolex.fao.org/docs/pdf/saf220858.pdf"},{"country":"US","region":"FL","locality":null,"status":"prohibited","note":"On the Florida Noxious Weed List (Rule 5B-57; nursery sales prohibited, movement regulated) and the Prohibited Aquatic Plant List; FISC Category I; UF/IFAS Assessment: invasive","source_url":"https://plant-directory.ifas.ufl.edu/plant-directory/schinus-terebinthifolia"}],"license":"CC-BY-4.0"}