Terebinth Tree

The terebinth belongs to the cashew family, Anacardiaceae, and grows as a small tree or large shrub up to 10 m tall. Its native range runs from the western regions of Morocco and Portugal to Greece and western and southeastern Turkey. Terebinths of the eastern Mediterranean shores were once regarded as a separate species, Pistacia palaestina, but this is now considered a synonym of P. terebinthus. The tree is dioecious, so both male and female specimens must be present for a viable population. The reddish-purple flowers appear with the new leaves in early spring. The edible fruit consists of small globular drupes 5-7 mm across, red to black when ripe.

The terebinth prefers relatively moist areas, up to 600 m in elevation. It tolerates more intense frost and summer drought than mastic can. The plant is common in the garrigue and maquis. The leaflet stalks of terebinth are simple, whereas those of mastic are flattened and winged.

The word turpentine was originally used for the exudate of terebinth trees, now called Chian, Chios or Cyprian turpentine. The name was later transferred to the crude turpentine and the essential oil of conifer trees. The word derives from the Greek noun terebinthos, the name of the terebinth tree. The main source of terebinth turpentine is P. atlantica, which produces abundant resin, whereas P. terebinthus yields a limited amount.

The leaf essential oil contains α-pinene (33-47%), limonene (17-29%) and β-pinene (3-12%). The gall essential oil contains α-pinene (53-66%), limonene (17-23%) and β-pinene (0-11%). The galls form through aphid-induced manipulation of the tree. They contain a mixture of 60% resin, 36% tannins and 4% essential oil. The essential oils vary in chemical composition between plant organs and between plant populations.

The plant is rich in tannins and resinous substances. Galls often found on the plant are used for tanning leather. In Cyprus the fruits are used to bake a specialty village bread. A coffee-like beverage is made from the roasted fruit, and a soap is made from the oil. In the Northern Sporades the shoots are used as a vegetable. Chios mastic gum is derived from Pistacia lentiscus.

People chew the resin as a gum, use it to flavour fermented drinks and sweets, and use it in place of Chios mastic gum. In traditional medicine the resin has been used for lip care, gastrointestinal relief and respiratory infections. The triterpenoids of the resin include isomasticadienonic acid (26%), 28-norolean-17-en-3-one (18%) and masticadienonic acid (7%). A triterpene has also been extracted from the galls.

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Related: Alpha Pinene · Angelica · Angelica Root · Angelica Root Oil · Artemisia · Barrenwort · Beachheather · Behini Tree