SAPINDACEAE - - Soapberry Family

Aesculus pavia Linnaeus var. pavia — Red Buckeye

Red Buckeye (Aesculus pavia) is a short tree or shrub of the southeastern U.S., to 20 feet tall, but more often a shrub to 13 feet, with an open crown, trunk slender, to 4-4.7 inches in diameter. There are two National Champion Red Buckeyes, the first has a circumference of 83 inches, a height of 47 feet, and a crown spread of 52 feet, the second has a circumference of 85 inches, a height of 46 feet and a crown spread of 54 feet. The short stature of Red Buckeye makes it a popular ornamental shrub. A successful ornamental hybrid, Aesculus X carnea, has been created by crossing Red Buckeye with Horsechestnut (A. hippocastanum). It has the showy flowers of the Horsechestnut, with the flower color of the Red Buckeye, with the handsome foliage of the Horsechestnut.

Separating Characteristics

Usually a multi-trunked shrub or small tree; only Buckeye with red flower color; leaf stalk (petiole) and leaflet mid-rib often red; scarlet tubular calyx (other species are bell-shaped; stamens slightly longer than petals; petal margin glandular; flower stalk (pedical) without glands; petals 4-5, red.

Habitat

An understory tree on rich, moist soil of deciduous forests and along stream banks throughout the Coastal Plain and lower Piedmont, extending into the Ridge and Valley of Alabama and Georgia. Also in these habitats: Swamp forests, usually stagnant, usually blackwater (not receiving significant alluvium), and especially over marl (coquina limestone).

Habitat information from:
Weakley, Alan S., Flora of the Southern and Mid-Atlantic States, Working Draft of 21 May 2015.

Native Range

Var. pavia ranges from southeastern NC south to central peninsular Florida and west to eastern Texas, extending north in the Missisippi Embayment to southeastern Missouri and southern Illinois, and in scattered occurrences off the Coastal Plain, as in northern Alabama, northwest Georgia and south central Tennessee. The range extension into central Texas shown on the map below represents Var. flavescens (Sargent) Correll (not treated here) which occurs in the Edwards Plateau of central Texas.

The native range of Aesculus pavia (Red Buckeye)

Kartesz, J.T., The Biota of North America Program (BONAP). 2015. North American Plant Atlas. (http://bonap.net/napa). Chapel Hill, N.C. [maps generated from Kartesz, J.T. 2015. Floristic Synthesis of North America, Version 1.0. Biota of North America Program (BONAP). (in press)].

The Georgia range of Aesculus pavia (Red Buckeye)

Zomlefer, W.B., J.R. Carter, & D.E. Giannasi. 2014 (and ongoing). The Atlas of Georgia Plants. University of Georgia Herbarium (Athens, Georgia) and Valdosta State University Herbarium (Valdosta, Georgia). Available at: http://www.georgiaherbaria.org/.