Chaste tree
Vitex agnus-castus
MediumSecondary
Production
A fast, tough pioneer shrub that colonises disturbed ground, feeds pollinators all summer and bounces back hard from pruning — but its seeds have real hormonal effects, so handle with care.
Tolerances & traits
- Strata
- Medium
- Lifecycle
- Secondary
- Soil preference
- Sandy, Loam
- Soil pH range
- 5.5 – 8.5
- Min. temperature
- -15°C
- Min. rainfall
- 350 mm/year
- Wind tolerance
- High
- Frost tolerance
- Medium
- Growth rate
- Fast
- Irrigation needed
- Low
How to manage it
Fast riparian pioneer shrub; coppice or pollard hard in late winter to keep it dense and flowering, and to generate chop-and-drop mulch.
Watch out for
Seeds (chasteberry) have real hormonal/endocrine effects — avoid if pregnant, breastfeeding, or on hormonal medication. Can self-seed along waterways in warm climates; young plants are frost-tender below about -12°C.
Design your line to see how your land fits Chaste tree.
Start designing your line →Related species