FNPS Plant Database

Aesculus pavia

red buckeye
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS

Nomenclature

Common Name:

red buckeye

Synonym(s):

Genus species:

Aesculus pavia

Family:

Sapindaceae

Plant Specifics

Form:

tree

Size:

8-35 ft tall by 5-20 ft wide

Life Span:

Long-lived perennial

Flower Color:

red

Fruit Color:

brown

Phenology:

Deciduous. Red blooms in early spring. Fruits ripen in fall.

Noted For:

Showy Flowers, Interesting Foliage

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:

Use as a specimen plant or understory tree. May be single or multi-stemmed.

Considerations:

Toxic fruits and foliage. Leaves drop earlier than other deciduous trees.

Availability:

Native Nurseries, FNPS Plant Sales, Friends

Propagation:

Seed, stem cuttings.

Light:

Part Sun, Shade

Moisture Tolerance:

Always Flooded---------------------------------Extremely Dry

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Usually moist, occasional inundation -to- Not wet but not extremely dry

Salt Water Flooding Tolerance:

Unknown

Salt Spray/Salty Soil Tolerance:

Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray

Soil or Other Substrate:

Sand, Loam

Soil pH:

6.1-7.5

Suitable to Grow In:

8A,8B,9A,9B

USDA zones are based on the average annual extreme minimum winter temperature.



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Ecology

Wildlife:

Butterflies, Hummingbirds

Native Habitats:

Upland hardwood forests.

Natural Range in Florida:

Comments:

Ethnobotany:

Native Americans crushed the seeds and young twigs and put them in water to stupefy fish for easier capture. Soap may be obtained from the roots and a black dye from the wood.

General Comments:

Citations:

Haehle, Robert G. and Joan Brookwell.  1999.  Native Florida Plants.  Gulf Publishing Company.  Houston, TX.



Nelson, Gil.  2003.  Florida's Best Landscape Plants. Association of Florida Native Nurseries.



Wunderlin, R. P., B. F. Hansen, A. R. Franck, and F. B. Essig. 2021. Atlas of Florida Plants ( https://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu/ ).  Institute for Systematic Botany, University of South Florida, Tampa.

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