Рожевий перець (Schinus molle)

Schinus molle is an evergreen tree that grows to 15 m and is native to an area from the Peruvian Andes to southern Brazil. It is the largest of all Schinus species. The word molle comes from mulli, the Quechua word for the tree. Despite its common name, the fruit is not a pepper: the tree is not in the Piperaceae family and is unrelated to black pepper (Piper nigrum).

The fruits are round drupes 5-7 mm in diameter that turn from green to red, pink or purplish. Male and female flowers occur on separate plants, and the small white flowers are borne in panicles at the ends of the drooping branches. The bark, leaves and berries are aromatic when crushed. The pink or red berries are sold as pink peppercorns and often blended with commercial pepper. The tree has also been used for spice production, but is mainly planted as an ornamental tree.

Dried berries of the related species Schinus terebinthifolia, the Brazilian pepper, are sometimes also called pink peppercorns. In one analysis, the fruit oil of Schinus molle was rich in hydrocarbon monoterpenes (42.65%), unlike that of Schinus terebinthifolius, which was high in hydrocarbon sesquiterpenes (40.57%). Extracts of S. molle have been used to flavor drinks and syrups.

One fruit oil showed high content of α-phellandrene (46.52%) and β-phellandrene (20.81%). The composition of the oil varies considerably with geographical and environmental factors, and chemotypes rich in α-phellandrene or in sabinene are described.

The fruit and leaves are potentially poisonous to poultry, pigs and possibly calves. Records also exist of young children who have experienced vomiting and diarrhea after eating the fruit. Schinus molle lacks generally recognized as safe (GRAS) status with the United States Food and Drug Administration. The tree is drought-tolerant and has become a serious invasive weed internationally.

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