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Pimenta racemosa

Bay-rum Tree

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Image:	Leaves, flowers and fruit	52KB

General Information

COMMON NAMES: Bay-rum Tree, Bay-oil Tree, Bay Rum Tree, Allspice [mistakenly in the Cook Islands]

GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE Caribbean - n.S.America

COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Introduced - Recent, Naturalised; Land, lowlands - mountains (+++) (mid-elev.)

SIGNIFICANCE LIST: (Cond 1+); Invasive - serious (Rarotonga - inland)

KEY FEATURES: Tree to 12m. LEAVES opposite, oval to 12x6cm, tip round, dark green above, paler below; edges downturned; fragrant when bruised; stalk to 10mm. FLOWERS in ~terminal clusters, fragrant, white; 1cmØ; stamens to 5mm, many, fringing; stigma, to 4mm, central; petals 5; sepal-lobes 5. FRUIT to 1cmØ, ripen black.

SIMILAR SPECIES: Allspice (Pimenta dioica) has narrow-oval leaves to 15x6xm (vs 12x6cm); longer leaf-stalks 10-15mm (vs 3-10mm); and 4 petals and 4 sepal lobes (vs. 5 + 5).

Cook Islands Distribution

View Distribution Map

Southern Group: Present Makatea: Present
RR	MG	AT	MK	MT	AK	PL	TK	MN
++++	++++	++	+	P		-	-	-

Northern Group: -
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW
-	-	-	-	-	-

Key to Symbols

blank	no data
-	absent	L	localised
X	extinct 'naturally'	W	widespread
XQi	quarantine intercepted	R	recent
XQe	eradicated	?	query preceding category
P	present	T?	taxonomic query
S	seasonal	nn	present, said to have no name
O	occasional	?1	present, name not investigated
++++	very common	?2	presence not verified, no name recorded
+++	common	N/A	absent, name not expected
++	uncommon
+	rare
Cook Islands islands: RR =Rarotonga, MG = Mangaia, AT =‘Ātiu, MK=Ma‘uke, MT=Miti‘āro, AK=Aitutaki, PL=Palmerston, PN=Penrhyn, MN=Manuae, TK=Takūtea, TN=Tongareva (TS=Tongaleva Spoken, TW=Tongareva Written, they say "el" but write "r"), MH=Manihiki, RK=Rakahanga, PK=Pukapuka, NS=Nassau, SW=Suwarrow. After a Polynesian name: ^=orthography query. Countries and other: FIJ=Fiji, WT=Wallis & Futuna, SAM=Samoa, TON=Tonga, NIU=Niue, CK=Cook Islands, CKM=Cook Islands Māori, FP=French Polynesia, AUS=Australs, SOC=Societies, TAH=Tahiti, TUA=Tuamotus, MQS=Marquesas, MNG=Mangareva, PIT=Pitcain group, EAS=Easter Island, HAW=Hawai‘i, NZ=New Zealand, NZM=New Zealand Māori

Scientific Taxonomy

Pimenta racemosa (Mill.)
SYNONYMS: Pimenta acris; Pimenta officinalis [sensu GW]; Myrtus racemosa

TAXONOMY: PLANTAE; ANTHOPHYTA (=Angiospermae); MAGNOLIOPSIDA (=Dicotyledones); ROSIDAE; Myrtales; MYRTACEAE

More Information

SIGNIFICANCE NOTES -
POSITIVE SIGNIFICANCE: (Cond 1+). Comments: Leaves sometimes used in cooking.
NEGATIVE SIGNIFICANCE: Invasive - serious (Rarotonga - inland). Comments: Commonly invasive in the lower inland forest of Rarotonga, probably spread by the Fruit-Dove or Pigeon.

GENERAL NOTE: In some countries, especially in the Caribbean, the leaf oil is extracted into rum, which is then distilled to make Bay Rum, a fragrant cologne and perfume. The Bay Rum Tree should not be confused with the Bay Tree, Sweet Bay, or Bay Laurel (Laurus nobilis), the source of the Bay Leaf used in cooking.

Vouchers & References

Vouchers:
None Recorded.

References:
p.635 Neal - In Gardens of Hawaii
p.873 Hortus 3rd
p.684 Tropica
p.3/306 A.C.Smith - Flora Vitiensis Nova
p.83 R Wilder - Flora of Rarotonga

Data Update History (information):
zTX, zB02, zM03a, zupM03b, zD02

Web Resources

Citation Information

McCormack, Gerald (2007) Cook Islands Biodiversity Database, Version 2007.2. Cook Islands Natural Heritage Trust, Rarotonga. Online at http://cookislands.bishopmuseum.org.
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