When I was a kid, I enjoyed playing in a chinaberry tree that was by my house. The forks in the limbs made it fun to climb. I remember sitting in a fork and wondering if there were kids in China sitting in trees like this one, playing and enjoying the shade. I heard stories of how you could take a twig, clear out its soft pith, and make a (berry) shooter or whistle or recorder from it. I didn’t know what I was doing trying this, so I had little success- but I had fun trying. The shade of the tree was a good place to play, or shell peas from the garden (if I had to). Lightning hit the tree twice over the years, the tree got too large, and my father cut it down. I have fond memories of that tree.
The chinaberry tree was very common in south Alabama years ago when I lived there. It was planted as a shade tree in yards, and it was grown next to fields and on terraces as a windbreak to help keep wind from blowing soil away when fields were laid bare from cultivation. The tree was a familiar sight as you traveled country roads. Now that most people prefer air conditioning and indoor activities to the shade of a chinaberry tree, it is not so common.
The chinaberry tree, scientific name Melia azedarach, has also been known as White cedar, Bead-tree, Pride of India, Cape lilac, Persian lilac, and Chinese umbrella tree. The tree is native to Pakistan, India, Indochina, Southeast Asia, 
China and Australia, but there are cultivars growing all over the world that are different from the wild types growing in Asia. The cultivars Umbraculiformis and Jade Snowflake were introduced into Georgia and South Carolina around 1830 as ornamental shade trees and are the common types found in North America. Umbraculiformis is distinguished by its multiple stems, an umbrella-like canopy, and shorter stature. Jade Snowflake is distinguished by its variegated leaves.
Chinaberry trees typically are 20 to 40 feet tall, with a spreading crown that shades much as an umbrella. The tree may reach 50 feet, and the trunk may reach 2 feet in diameter. The tree is 
in the mahogany family, and its wood has been made into beautiful cabinets and furniture. This wood is considered by most to be the tree’s greatest value, but this value is yet to be developed. Forked branches spread to create a canopy. The bark is brown to slightly reddish-brown, and it becomes increasingly fissured with age. Twigs are olive-brown to brown with lighter lenticels, and they have a continuous white pith.
Chinaberry leaves are lance-shaped, and they may reach 1 to 2 inches in length. They may be coarsely toothed or lobed. Leaf color is dark green on top and lighter green below, with variegated leaves on the Jade Snowflake cultivar. Leaves are pinnate, which means the veins run on either side 
of a mid-stem like a feather. A large petiole or leaf stem branches into pairs of secondary petioles that bear many leaflets before ending with a single leaf. Autumn leaf color is yellow or brown.
Fragrant purple-white chinaberry flowers appear in March or April. They hang in long, loose clusters after the leaves appear. Each flower is ½ to 1 inch across, and has 5 petals. The fruit is a 1/2 inch drupe containing 1 to 6 seeds (typically 5) that ripens to yellow-brown. These “chinaberries” hang in clusters, and persist all winter. Chinaberries have been used to make rosaries and other jewelry, and as ammunition for sling-shots. They have been used for fishing, by crushing them in a bag or other container and throwing them in the water to poison and 
thus stun the fish. Crushed berries in water has been used on lawns to ward off fleas. They reportedly have been used to help in washing clothes, by mashing them in water so that they make suds.
Considering that all parts of the chinaberry tree are poisonous, it is incredible that the tree has found so many uses. No pests are ever noticed on this tree, due to its toxic properties. Most pollinators such as butterflies and bees are not attracted to the flowers. The berries have a neurotoxin that affects birds that eat them. Birds can sometimes be found in a “drunken state” around chinaberry trees after eating the berries. Chinaberry leaves may be placed with fruit that are being stored, as an insecticide to help keep insects away. It is said that as few as six to eight chinaberries can kill a child who eats them. Yet, there are some who believe that it is possible to use chinaberry extracts for antiviral, anti-cancer, and anti-parasitic properties. All parts of the chinaberry tree are toxic to people, pets and livestock, and may cause diarrhea, vomiting, weakness, seizures, cardiac arrest, and death. Remedies often do more harm than good. One must approach use of the chinaberry tree with caution.
Chinaberry trees not only have toxic properties, but they are very invasive. New trees sprout from the many chinaberries the tree produces, and from root nodules. Chinaberry thickets often can be controlled only with the help of herbicides. The chinaberry tree is truly an interesting and useful tree, but it must be enjoyed with caution.
