# What kind of a tree is this? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 3, 2013, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886 "2013-09-03T14:13:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886/1 "2013-09-03T14:13:24Z")
[Tree](http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=ra6zpu&s=5) and [its berries](http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=2d8rj2r&s=5). I hate this tree. It drops these hard little red nuts all over the ground and my car. Worse is that the nuts have this wooden shell around it that splinters and gets all over the place. The tree bloomed early on during the summer and its still blooming and dropping crap all over the place ---
**Author:** ![MikeS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MikeS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeS)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886/2 "2013-09-03T14:22:07Z")
No idea here; but when the real botanists/naturalists/gardeners show up, it would probably be helpful for them to know the geographic area where the tree is located, and whether it’s growing in a more natural or cultivated/landscaped area. (I’m guessing cultivated, given the shot of the seeds in the parking lot.) ---
**Author:** ![percypercy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8baadc/32.png) [@percypercy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/percypercy)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886/3 "2013-09-03T14:53:54Z")
and perhaps about how tall it is? ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886/4 "2013-09-03T15:39:05Z")
Can you take a picture of an individual leaf? ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886/5 "2013-09-03T17:27:35Z")
I’m located in Los Angeles. These trees are in little spaces within our parking lot to provide shade. I don’t know about how natural it grows, but I’m pretty sure nobody goes around watering them. They do that fine most of the year except when it blooms and those damn berries drop everywhere. They are uh…maybe twice the height of a GMC Van, around 15 feet? I’ll try to get a picture of the leaf tomorrow when I have my camera and post it ---
**Author:** ![EmilyG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emilyg/32/364_2.png) [@EmilyG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmilyG)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886/6 "2013-09-03T17:46:21Z")
It looks a bit like mountain ash, but I think mountain ash has softer berries. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886/7 "2013-09-03T17:49:57Z")
[Chinaberry?](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melia_azedarach) The fruit color can vary. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886/8 "2013-09-03T17:54:02Z")
[Might help…](http://www.ehow.com/how_8595459_identify-tree-red-berries.html) ---
**Author:** ![Twoflower](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/twoflower/32/22_2.png) [@Twoflower](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Twoflower)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886/9 "2013-09-03T17:54:07Z")
Maybe [soapberry](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sapindus)? ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886/10 "2013-09-03T17:55:17Z")
[This page](http://bss.lacity.org/UrbanForestry/StreetTreeSelectionGuide.htm) might help to identify the tree. It’s Los Angeles’ street tree selection guide. If you’re seeing that tree in LA, it’s probably on the list. ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886/11 "2013-09-03T20:24:52Z")
I’m sure its not chinaberry or soapberry, the pictures in the wiki didn’t look like the berries I’ve seen. I’ll look through the other links though. I should clarify: I call them “berries” but they are anything but “berry-like”. They are hard, like a nut, with no pulp or juiciness. When you step on them they don’t break open like a peanut, they are really hard, you could catapult them with a rubber band at someone and take out an eye ---
**Author:** ![Lasciel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e79b87/32.png) [@Lasciel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lasciel)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886/12 "2013-09-03T20:54:07Z")
I think they’re Crape Myrtle trees, and they’ve been growing like mad this summer in the southeast (other side of the country) because it’s been so damn wet. They usually flower once and then seed out, and then they’re done, but they’ve been flowering and seeding pretty much monthly since about April of this year. It’s been crazy - parking lots and streets just covered with the little crunchy nutshells, and the lacy flowers look like ass when they’re all waterlogged and dying in the streets also. We don’t see the inner pith of the nuts (your red berries) very often because the birds eat them, but since there are so many of them this year, I’ve seen the piths out in the streets also. Usually we just see the outer shells after they fall. ---
**Author:** ![MsBatt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c68b51/32.png) [@MsBatt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsBatt)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886/13 "2013-09-03T21:18:52Z")
Nope. Not crape myrtle. There’s a website called GardenWeb that has a “ID This Plant” board that can certainly ID it for you. ---
**Author:** ![YogSothoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8edcca/32.png) [@YogSothoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YogSothoth)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886/14 "2013-09-03T21:54:48Z")
Its not Crape Myrtle, too flowery. I forgot to mention that the tree is pretty much all green, even when it blooms, there’s no real flower, just strings of those damn berries ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886/15 "2013-09-03T22:15:32Z")
Possibly Brazilian Pepper: > **[Schinus terebinthifolia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schinus_terebinthifolius)** > > Schinus terebinthifolia is a species of flowering plant in the cashew family, Anacardiaceae, that is native to subtropical and tropical South America. Common names include Brazilian peppertree, aroeira, rose pepper, broadleaved pepper tree, wilelaiki (or wililaiki), Christmasberry tree and Florida holly. The species name has been very commonly misspelled as ‘terebinthifolius’.\[a\] > Brazilian peppertree is a sprawling shrub or small tree, with a shallow root system, reaching a height of 7–10 m. ... Sometimes planted as an ornamental, it is widely regarded as invasive. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886/16 "2013-09-03T22:36:51Z")
It’s not Schinus - the seeds from that are round and quite easily crushed. ---
**Author:** ![ombre12](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/d26b3c/32.png) [@ombre12](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ombre12)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886/17 "2013-09-03T22:42:15Z")
I have a chinaberry tree in my back yard in Florida, 40 feet tall now. Messiest tree I ever saw but wonderful for shade. The chinaberrys that drop sound just like what you are talking about. Considered a trash tree here that I should cut down. But I do like its good points. Hate the hard as a rock chinaberrys. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [September 3, 2013, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886/18 "2013-09-03T23:05:27Z")
Found it. It’s _[Erythrina perrieri](http://waynesword.palomar.edu/ww0901b.htm)_, or another species in that genus. ETA: Oops - no, it’s one of the others mentioned on that page - _Cupaniopsis anacardioides_ ---
**Author:** ![Blake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@Blake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blake)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2013, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-a-tree-is-this/667886/19 "2013-09-04T21:35:13Z")
Yep, that’s tuckeroo. They’re an invasive weed in the US, so you could probably use that as as leverage to get them removed. On the bright side, the orange bit around the seeds is edible, so you have a reliable food source.