Weed of the Week 

Produced by the USDA Forest Service, Forest Health Staff, Newtown Square, PA. WOW 04-25-05

Invasive Plants website: http://www.na.fs.fed.us/fhp/invasive_plants 

Chinaberry Tree Melia azedarach L. 

Common Names: chinaberry, Indian lilac, lelah, paraiso, pride of India, white 

cedar, China tree, bead tree, Persian lilac 

Native Origin: Southeast Asia and Northern Australia; introduced in mid1800s as an ornamental. 

Description: A deciduous small to medium-sized tree in the mahogany family 

(Meliaceae), growing to a height of 50 feet and diameter of 2 feet with 

spreading crown and branched trunk with multiple boles. Stems are stout, 

glossy olive green to brown with numerous lighter dots (lenticels) and threelobed leaf scar. Buds are small, round and fuzzy light brown. Bark is dark 

chocolate brown becoming increasingly fissured with age. Wood is soft and 

white. Lacy, dark-green leaves are alternately whorled, bi-pinnately 

compound, 1 to 2 feet long and 9 to 16 inches wide with a musky odor. 

Each leaflet is lanceolate with tapering tips, 1 to 3 inches long and 0.5 to 1.2 

inches wide. Glossy dark green with light-green mid-vein above and pale 

green with lighter-green mid-vein beneath, becoming golden yellow in fall. 

Long loose clusters of pinkish-lavender to whitish flowers are produced in 

spring, March to May. Fragrant clusters of flowers yield yellow-brown berries

July to January. Berrylike spherical drupes contain a stone with one to six 

seeds. This fruit is poisonous to humans and livestock. 

Habitat: This species is commonly found on roadsides, forest margins, open areas, clearings, and near 

dwellings, in low elevations (below 1000'). It is tolerant dry soils and semi-shade. Chinaberry forms colonies 

from root sprouts or sprouts from root collars, and spreads by abundant seeds that are dispersed by birds. 

Distribution: This species is reported from states shaded on Plants Database map. It 

is reported invasive in AL, AR, FL, GA, HI, LA, MS, NC, OK, SC, TX, UT, and VA. 

Ecological Impacts: It invades disturbed areas and is commonly found along roads 

and forest edges. It has the potential to grow in dense thickets, restricting the growth 

of native vegetation. Seeds are dispersed by birds, although they are toxic to humans 

and livestock.

Control and Management: 

• Manual-. Manual and mechanical methods of control may therefore be ineffective in controlling the spread 

and extent of chinaberry because of its ability to send root and stem suckers from underground storage 

organs. 

• Chemical- It can be effectively controlled using any of several readily available general use herbicides such 

as glyphosate or tricloyr. Apply herbicides at the base of the trunk or use the cut-stump treatment. Foliar 

treatment can be used but high volumes of the solution are required. Follow label and state requirements. 

References: http://plants.usda.gov, www.invasive.org, 

http://enature.com/native_invasive/invasives_top.asp, 

Nonnative Invasive Plants of Southern Forests, USDA. Miller, James H. p. 8-9, Virginia Tech Dept. of Forestrywww.cnr.vt.edu/dendro/dendrology/syllabus/mazedarach.htm, 

http://tncweeds.ucdavis.edu/esadocs/documnts/meliaze. www.georgiainvasives.org/weeds/chinaberry.html