Common Name(s): Chasteberry , Chastetree , Chaste Tree Lilac , Monk's Pepper , Texas lilac
Features aromatic, compound, palmate, grayish-green leaves with 5-7 lance-shaped leaflets (each leaflet to 6" long) and tiny, fragrant, lavender to pale violet flowers appearing in loose panicles (to 12" long) in mid to late summer. Flowers are quite attractive to butterflies.
It blooms on new wood, so may be pruned to the ground in early spring like a perennial to invigorate growth. It is loosely branched in an open vase shape with interesting foliage. Preference is for full sun and loose, moist, well-drained soil.
In warmer climates, it can be trained to grow as a small, single-trunk tree or a large shrub. Although typically grown as a 10–15-foot shrub, in tree form it can reach heights and widths of up to 20 feet. This long-lived specimen's rapid growth rate can add up to 24 inches per year in height.
Zone: 6 to 9
Height: 8.00 to 10.00 feet
Spread: 5.00 to 8.00 feet
Bloom Time: July to August
Bloom Description: Violet / blue
Medicinal use of :
This species is widely used in Chinese herbal medicine, it is the second most important treatment for chronic bronchitis. The leaves are astringent, febrifuge, sedative, tonic and vermifuge. They are useful in dispersing swellings of the joints from acute rheumatism, and of the testes from suppressed gonorrhea. The juice of the leaves is used for removing foetid discharges and worms from ulcers, whilst an oil prepared with the leaf juice is applied to sinuses and scrofulous sores.They are harvested in early summer and used fresh or dried. A decoction of the stems is used in the treatment of burns and scalds. The dried fruit is vermifuge. The fruit is also used in the treatment of angina, colds, coughs, rheumatic difficulties etc. The fresh berries are pounded to a pulp and used in the form of a tincture for the relief of paralysis, pains in the limbs, weakness etc. The root is expectorant, febrifuge and tonic. It is used in the treatment of colds and rheumatic ailments. It is harvested in late summer and autumn, and dried for later use. The plant is said to be a malarial preventative and is also used in the treatment of bacterial dysentery - extracts of the leaves have shown bactericidal and antitumor activity.
Edible parts of :
Seed - occasionally used as a condiment, it is a pepper substitute. When washed to remove the bitterness it can be ground into a powder and used as a flour, though it is very much a famine food used only when all else fails. A tea is made from the roots and leaves.
Other uses of :
Young stems are used in basket making and for making wattles. The leaves are used to repel insects in grain stores. Extracts of the leaves have insecticidal activity. The fresh leaves are burnt with grass as a fumigant against mosquitoes. The plant is grown on slopes to counter land slides.
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