What is allspice?

Allspice is not a mixture of different spices, it is a tree from the Caribbean, Pimenta dioica. The flavor of the spice is said to taste like a combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves, which is where it gets its name.

The unripe allspice berries are harvested, dried and ground into the spice you find in your local grocery store. It is the principle ingredient in Jamaican jerk seasoning and Cincinnati chili, as well as one of the ingredients in A1 steak sauce and Worchester sauce.

The dried berries are what are most commonly used as a spice, but the entire tree contains the aromatic compounds that give the spice its flavor. The fragrance released from a crushed leaf is overwhelming.

Growing the allspice tree

There really isn’t any secret to growing this plant. Allspice is pretty tropical, but I’m growing one in the ground here in zone 9b. It has had its tender newer growth burned off by cold snaps, but the older hardened off foliage always makes it through without any problems. In colder climates, these do quite well as a container specimen. It is a rather slow growing tree, but if given full sun, and well draining soil with lots of organic matter, it will steadily grow into a densely foliated shrub or small tree.

The one problem with this plant is that it is dioecious. Each plant is either a male or a female. Only the females produce the berries that are used as a spice, and only if there is a male present to pollinate them. The good news is that the the whole plant can be used, not just the berries. The leaves and wood can be used to smoke meat, and the fresh leaves can be used in much the same way as you would use bay leaves. Mine has never bloomed, but I don’t care. I simply use the fresh picked leaves to flavor anything that I would have used the berries for. I put two or three allspice leaves in my Cincinnati chili rather than using the powdered allspice. The leaves do have to be used fresh though, as they don’t retain their flavor when dried.

On top of all of this, it is a beautiful tree in the landscape.

Origin

Jamaica.

Family

Myrtaceae.

Binomial nomenclature

Pimenta dioica.

Common names

Allspice.

Description

An attractive evergreen tropical. The light green, simple, leaves are long, and narrow, with a glossy upper surface. Dioecious, the male and female flowers are produced on separate plants. The white flowers are borne on terminal panicles. On mature trees, the bark peels off in strips.

Height

30′ tall in the tropics. In more temperate climates it tends to grow as a 6′-10′ tall shrub.

Temperature/Zone

Zone 9b, 32°F. This plant prefers warm humid conditions. In lower zones, it does quite well as a container specimen in a bright south facing window during the Winter.

Light

Full sun to part sun. In too much shade this tree will be stunted.

Water

Keep them evenly moist while they are growing, but never soggy.

Fertilizer

I use a balanced fertilizer. while they are growing. I do not fertilize them in the Winter.

Cultivation

Pimenta dioica is easy to grow. It prefers rich, well drained soil.

Pests

I have not found any pests to be a problem for this plant in Florida.