Tree · Anacardiaceae Draft — unreviewed
Chinese pistache
Pistacia chinensis Bunge
Heat- and drought-tolerant shade tree with brilliant orange-red fall colour even in hot climates. A good deciduous patio tree for the Southwest and Southeast.
Size over time
Typical landscape size 9–12 m (30–39 ft) tall and 8–11 m (26–36 ft) wide; medium growth, about 25 years to maturity. Intermediate sizes use the planner’s growth curve (k = 0.25) from the BB-2in install size.
Design notes
- Seedlings are irregular when young; train to a central leader.
- Female trees fruit and can self-seed in some areas — specify male selections where available.
Regions
Native range: China and Taiwan.
Not recorded as native to any of the three pilot regions.
Native status describes where the species occurs naturally. It is not a promise that it suits a particular garden; site conditions decide that.
Related plants
Japanese maple
Acer palmatum · Tree · 4–8 m (13–26 ft)
Red maple
Acer rubrum · Tree · 12–18 m (39–59 ft)
Sugar maple
Acer saccharum · Tree · 15–22 m (49–72 ft)
Downy serviceberry
Amelanchier arborea · Tree · 5–8 m (16–26 ft)
River birch
Betula nigra · Tree · 12–18 m (39–59 ft)
American hornbeam
Carpinus caroliniana · Tree · 6–9 m (20–30 ft)
Plan with Chinese pistache
Place it in a design, check it against your zone, light and moisture, and see it at year three and year ten.