Mexican Pistache
Pistacia mexicana
Family: Anacardiaceae
OTHER NAMES
Texas pistachio
Spanish: lantrisco, copall pistachio
CHARACTERISTICS
A large, airy, rounded deciduous to semi-deciduous shrub or multi-trunked small tree, 10-30’ tall with some specimens reaching 40’. Its glossy foliage emerges reddish in spring. Clusters of small, white flowers emerge in spring. On female plants (this species is dioecious) the flowers are followed by clusters of red, nut-like drupes on females—these eventually turn purplish blue, then almost black on drying. The bark is white and peels off the trunks.
LANDSCAPE USE
Screening shrub or small tree.
GROWING CONDITIONS
AN EXPLANAITION OF TERMS USED
SUN full to part sun
WATER moderate to low
SOIL not picky, but well-drained
HARDINESS hardy to about 0°F
BASIN high zone
CONTAINER does moderately well in containers but will not attain full size
NUTRITION low
MAINTENANCE very little
ECOLOGY
The fruits attract birds.
ETHNOBOTANY
Unknown.
NATURAL DISTRIBUTION
Found in Guatemala, Mexico, and the United States (Texas) in dry, montane scrub or pine-oak formations, calcareous soil over limestone, rocky or gravelly areas; at elevations from 1,500 - 8,000’ in elevation. This species is threatened by habitat loss.
TAXONOMY AND NAME
This species is in the Anachardiaceae, the cashew family. There are 8 species of Pistacia .
Formerly known as Pistacia texana.
The genus Pistacia is Latin from Greek pistakion, from Old Persian, the word for the old world pistachios and the species “mexicana” means “of Mexico”.
The foliage is quite attractive and glossy green. This plant makes a great screening shrub. Photo by Rebecca Cowser, iNaturalist
In spring, the new foliage emerges red. Photo by johntownsend, iNaturalist
The flowers emerge in spring. Photo by Ana Nuño, iNaturalist
The fruits follow the flowers. Photo by Raymundo Perez, iNaturalist