How Fast Does a Pepper Tree Grow?

Growth Rate

• According to the California Invasive Plant Council, the Brazilian pepper tree has an aggressive growth rate that rapidly displaces native vegetation. Tree seedlings that are 4 to 12 inches tall usually attain a height of 7 feet in about two years, as observed in the Everglades National Park. In open pinelands and infertile lands, 87 percent of tree seedlings displayed a positive growth rate and grew a little less than 1/4 inch per month. Weather conditions and water affect the growth rate of the tree. In another instance, 10- to 12-inch-tall seedlings planted on previously farmed land in southern Florida grew to about 15 feet in 20 months. A pepper tree planted in southern Brazil attained a height of nearly 12 feet in 19 months.

Description

• The Brazilian pepper tree is an evergreen tree, large shrub or sometime a woody vine with a mature height of 10 to 43 feet. The trunk is multistemmed with stem diameter of less than 4 inches and a smooth bark that gradually becomes furrowed with age. The compound foliage is 1 to 4 inches long and the flowers grow in the form of 5-inch-long panicles. The flowers bloom in September and are followed by 1/4-inch, round fruit containing a single seed and smelling distinctly like pepper.

Invasive Potential

• The tree has a more aggressive growth habit in cultivated environments and a single tree grows into thick stands within a few years. Competing vegetation is shaded out by the dense canopy. This also seriously displaces the animals that rely on the native vegetation for habitat and food. Pepper tree reproduces by fast-germinating seeds with seedlings that are as competitive as mature trees. The tree also produces certain allelopathic chemicals in the soil that discourage the growth of other plants. Resprouting occurs quickly when the tree is cut. This causes rapid establishment in burned areas.

Preferred Sites

• The tree commonly occurs at elevations of less than 700 feet and grows most prolifically in well-drained ground. The pepper tree frequently invades bald cypress stands, disturbed sites, undisturbed wildland areas, pineland and marshes. The abandoned farmlands near the Everglades National Park consists of 80 percent of Brazilian pepper trees.