I decided to jump right in on investigating the plants. These are the biggest plants on the hill, so it seemed logical to start here.
Are these gangs of shrubs, or thickets of trees? Are they going to become native centerpieces of The Hill, or are they destined for eradication? Multiple shrubs in two gangs are included in this investigation, the investigation begins…
Are these gangs of shrubs, or thickets of trees? Are they going to become native centerpieces of The Hill, or are they destined for eradication? Multiple shrubs in two gangs are included in this investigation, the investigation begins…
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| Northeast Slope Gang |
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| South Central Base Gang |
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| A Member of the South Central Base Gang |
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| Identifying Features: Appears Evergreen, Compound leaf structure with 9 pinnate elliptical leaflets. New growth appears red. |
Shrub: noun, a woody
plant that is smaller than a tree and has several main stems arising at or near
the ground.
Tree: noun, a woody
perennial plant, typically having a single stem or trunk growing to a
considerable height and bearing lateral branches at some distance from the ground
This plant is tricky…
It looks like a shrub. Looks can
be deceiving. It could look like a shrub
since my partner in life and crime enjoys cutting these guys to the ground any
chance he gets. For this reason, it was
difficult to identify them. I started
with way too many google searches, evergreen shrub, odd number of leaflets in a
compound leaf, pinnate leaflets, red immature leaves….. Again, and again, and again. Different combinations, different characteristics,
different outcomes. Nothing felt right,
but here is what I found.
Tree of Heaven (Ailanthus altissima) was a contender in the
early investigation.
Shivers were going up and down my spine as I read the
description. I redubbed it Tree of
Heaven if you took a VERY WRONG TURN… This
tree is a major eradication nightmare. Having
a gang of these could be their own 10-year project to remove. I counted the leaves and looked at the description
of the seed pods for relief. Tree of
Heaven has an even number of leaflets in the compound leaf. These guys have an odd number of leaflets in the
compound leaf. Tree of Heaven has a
distinct seed pod, I have yet to see a seed on this guy. The Tree of Heaven also supposedly
STINKS!! STINKS LIKE THE SULFUR YOU
SMELL WHEN YOU TOOK THAT VERY WRONG TURN….
This gang had a scent, but it isn’t horrible. Relief ensued.
Laurel Sumac (Malosma laurina) popped up in a search.
Ahhh, wouldn’t that be nice… I admit I spent at least one day in this
fantasy without looking further. Laurel
Sumac is native, it is gorgeous, and it means I don’t have (I mean my partner
in life and crime doesn’t have) a big removal job in the future. There are two gangs to remove, the Northeast
Slope Gang and the South Central Base Gang, there would be some serious removal
going on and each removal would be a unique challenge to prevent erosion and
damage to the soil. After I spent a day
in my fantasy I went back outside and checked out how this plant on my neighbor’s
yard was ATTACKING the eucalyptus.
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| The Shrub-Tree under investigation attacking a eucalyptus tree. Yeah, these guys are thugs. |
This shrub-tree is clearly a thug, ready to take The Hill by any means at its disposal!
If it is a California native it would have taken back San Diego without
my help. Lesson learned - just because
someone posted the wrong picture with the wrong name on the internet, doesn’t
make it truth. Stick to reliable sources
of information.
I decided to consult the invasive plant guide and go down
that list, eliminating and narrowing down suspects. A couple stood out, the Brazilian Pepper Tree
(Schinus terebinthifolia) and the Peruvian Pepper Tree (Schinus molle).
More Info on Brazilian Pepper Tree:
More Info on Peruvian Pepper Tree:
Even though our gangs are small, I looked at neighboring
hills and realized, this guy can get big….
These are real possibilities! The
leaves weren’t quite right on the Peruvian Pepper Tree, but I needed more
information on the Brazilian pepper tree.
I did what any good investigator would do, I trespassed ever so slightly
onto the neighboring hill for a closer look at a mature plan. There is no fence, the neighbors like me, and
I pull their weeds on occasion, so while not sanctioned, probably an acceptable
thing to do.
Looking at a mature plant confirmed my suspicions.
The tree is semi-deciduous, there is leaf litter.
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| This shrub-tree loses its leaves |
And even though it isn’t the right season, I was able to
find traces of the tell-tale sign… The
pink peppercorn seeds:
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| Confirming evidence, pink and red peppercorn seeds. |
I am sorry shrub gangs, I mean tree gangs that we keep pruned to the ground like shrubs, the verdict is in… You are listed on the invasive plant list, you are acutely terrible, you are..
Brazilian Peppertree- Schinus terebinthifolius var.
acutifolius, leaves to 22 cm, with 7–15 leaflets, fruit pink
You
are sentenced to impending eradication, in an orderly fashion to
minimize erosion and soil damage of course. We will look to the eradication advice set forth by the Cal-IPC to ensure your proper removal:
We will follow your fate in the future….
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