Tasmannia ? Tasmannia Scientific classification Kingdom : Plantae Division : Magnoliophyta Class : Magnoliopsida Order : Canellales Family : Winteraceae Genus : Tasmannia Species ( not a complete list ) T. axillaris T. glaucifolia T. lanceolata T. membranea T. piperita T. purpurascens T. stipitata T. xerophila Tasmannia is a genus of woody , evergreen flowering plants of the family Winteraceae . The species of Tasmannia are native Australia , New Guinea and New Zealand . The Winteraceae are palaeodicots , associated with the humid Antarctic flora of the southern hemisphere . The members of the family generally have aromatic bark and leaves , and some are used to extract essential oils . The peppery-flavored fruits and leaves ( esp. dried ) of this genus are increasingly used as a condiment in Australia and New Zealand . Overview The species of Tasmannia were formerly classified in genus Drimys , a related group of Winteraceae native to the Neotropic . Recent studies have led to an increasing consensus among botanists to split the genus into two , with the Neotropical species remaining in genus Drimys , and the Australasian species classified in genus Tasmannia . Tasmanian pepper or mountain pepper ( T. lanceolata , often referred to as Drimys lanceolata or T. aromatica , and not to be confused with related pepperbushes such as T. stipitata or T. inspida ) is an attractive dioecious shrub which grows to 3 meters in height in an open form , with lance-shaped dark green leaves and reddish stems . It ranges from Tasmania and eastern Victoria and New South Wales to southeastern Queensland , and in the mountains of northeastern Queensland , where it grows in moist subtropical forests and in wet areas in the drier forest and along watercourses to an elevation of 1500 metres . T. axillaris , also commonly referred to as Drimys axillaris , is an aromatic tree native to New Zealand , where it is known as the pepper tree . T. purpurascens ( common name Broad Leaf Pepperbush ) is a shrub or small tree , 1-3 m high and 1.5 m wide , endemic to the Gloucester Tops and Barrington Tops in the Central Tablelands of New South Wales , Australia , where it grows abundantly in moist Eucalyptus forest above 1300 meters elevation . T. piperita is native to New Guinea . T. glaucifolia ( common name Fragrant Pepperbush ) and T.xerophila ( common name Alpine Pepper ) contain the chemical myristicin , and T.glaucifolia is also known to contain other related compounds like safrole . A list of pepperbushes and their common names , with some culinary comments : T. glaucifolia - Fragrant Pepperbush . Possibly the hottest of all the Tasmannias ( as a spice ) . T. insipida - Brush Pepperbush . Apparently has little flavour , hence the name . T. lanceolata - Mountain Pepperbush . One of the most common bush peppers sold commercially . T. membranea – Pepper Tree . T. purpurescens - Broad Leaf Pepperbush . T. stipitata - Dorrigo Pepper . The other most common bush pepper sold commercially . T. xerophilia - Alpine or Snow Pepper . Apparently hotter than lanceolata . See also Bushtucker References Doust , Andrew N. and Drinnan , Andrew N. , 2004 . Floral development and molecular phylogeny support the generic status of Tasmannia ( Winteraceae ) . American Journal of Botany 91 : 321–331 . Sampson , F.B. , Williams , J.B. and Woodland , Poh S. , The Morphology and Taxonomic Position of Tasmannia glaucifolia ( Winteraceae ) , 1988 . A New Australian Species . Australian Journal of Botany 36 ( 4 ) : 395–414 . Smith , Keith and Irene. 1999 . Grow your own bushfoods . New Holland Publishers , Sydney , Australia . Robins , Juleigh. 1996 . Wild Lime : Cooking from the bushfood garden . Allen & Unwin Pty Ltd , Sydney , Australia . Bryant , Geoff. 2005 . The Random House Enyclopedia of Australian Native Plants . Random House , Sydney , Australia . Australian Broadcasting Corporation . Flora 's native plants . ABC Books , Sydney , Australia . Low , Tim. 1991 . Wild food plants of Australia . Angus & Robertson Publishers , Sydney , Australia . External links Tasmannia purpurascens ( Australian National Botanic Gardens ) Gernot Katzer 's Spice Pages : Tasmanian Pepper Australian Bushfood and Native Medicine Forum : Do we have a native pepper ? Dieman Pepper : Plant information Categories : Canellales | Bushfood In other languages : Italiano lightgreen Tasmannia Plantae Magnoliophyta Magnoliopsida Canellales Winteraceae Tasmannia Species ( not a complete list ) T. axillaris T. glaucifolia T. lanceolata T. membranea T. piperita T. purpurascens T. stipitata T. xerophila 