Paradise-Tree

Simarouba glauca DC.

sim-ah-ROO-bah GLAU-cah

Simaroubaceae

Explanation of name: Simaruba comes from a Carib word, simarouba, for medicinal bark.  Glaucous means with a white-blue-waxy coating.

Natural range: Florida, Caribbean. Hammocks (FL)

Recognition: A usually modest-sized native tree with distinctive pinnately compound leaves, these having the leaflets elliptic, smooth-margined, dark glossy green, and leathery. The creamy white flowers are small but numerous in large panicles followed by numerous orangish then blackish fruits to about an inch long.

Landscape uses-Modified from PB Post Garden Guru article by G. Rogers:

Readers with northern urban roots are familiar with the “Tree-of-Heaven,” which some folks regard as weedy, and which others appreciate as miraculously tolerant of urban conditions. Our Paradise Tree is related to and vaguely resembles Tree-of-Heaven but is nobody’s weed. It is a small to medium-sized tree with a straight trunk prone to divide into multiple major branches, and dark green, glossy compound leaves. (Compound leaves look like branchlets with several small leaves on them, such as a fern frond.)  Paradise Tree flowers are yellowish; individually small, their clusters are large, lax, and showy. About an inch long, the fleshy fruits likewise can be showy en masse. Passing through an orangish phase, they turn near-black with the ability to make a mess on pavement. With some exceptions, the trees are usually either male or female, with only the females producing fruits and needing a nearby male for good fruitset. The roots tend to be shallow, therefore susceptible to damage from compaction and vehicles, and they can protrude annoyingly above-ground. The trees don’t like high wind, storms, and cold, so semi-protected sites are best.

Note: This and other species of the genus Simaruba have long histories as remedies for many complaints, especially dysentery. The fatty seeds are a source of a product used like cocoa butter. Propagate by seed (UFST390).