Aesculus pavia, known as
Red Buckeye or
Firecracker Plant, is a species of
deciduousDeciduous means falling off at maturity or tending to fall off and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe...
flowering plantThe flowering plants or angiosperms are the most diverse group of land plants. The flowering plants and the gymnosperms are the only extant groups of seed plants...
. The small tree or shrub is native to the southern and eastern parts of the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, found from
IllinoisIllinois , the 21st state admitted to the United States of America, is the most populous and demographically diverse Midwestern state and the fifth most populous state in the nation...
to
VirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" because it is the birthplace of eight U.S. presidents. The geography and climate of the state are shaped by the Blue...
in the north and from
TexasTexas is the second-largest U.S. state in both area and population, and the largest state in the contiguous United States.The name had wide usage among native Americans, meaning "friends" or "allies"...
to
FloridaFlorida is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the north. It was the 27th state admitted to the United States...
in the south.
It has a number of local names, such as scarlet buckeye, woolly buckeye and firecracker plant.
The Red Buckeye is a large
shrubA shrub or bush is a horticultural rather than strictly botanical category of woody plant, distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and lower height, usually less than 5-6 m tall. A large number of plants can be either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
or small
treeA tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
.
Aesculus pavia, known as
Red Buckeye or
Firecracker Plant, is a species of
deciduousDeciduous means falling off at maturity or tending to fall off and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe...
flowering plantThe flowering plants or angiosperms are the most diverse group of land plants. The flowering plants and the gymnosperms are the only extant groups of seed plants...
. The small tree or shrub is native to the southern and eastern parts of the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, found from
IllinoisIllinois , the 21st state admitted to the United States of America, is the most populous and demographically diverse Midwestern state and the fifth most populous state in the nation...
to
VirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" because it is the birthplace of eight U.S. presidents. The geography and climate of the state are shaped by the Blue...
in the north and from
TexasTexas is the second-largest U.S. state in both area and population, and the largest state in the contiguous United States.The name had wide usage among native Americans, meaning "friends" or "allies"...
to
FloridaFlorida is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the north. It was the 27th state admitted to the United States...
in the south.
It has a number of local names, such as scarlet buckeye, woolly buckeye and firecracker plant.
The Red Buckeye is a large
shrubA shrub or bush is a horticultural rather than strictly botanical category of woody plant, distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and lower height, usually less than 5-6 m tall. A large number of plants can be either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
or small
treeA tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
. It reaches a height of 5-8 m, often growing in a multi-stemmed form. Its leaves are opposite, and are usually composed of five elliptical serrated leaflets, each 10-15 cm long. It bears 10-17 cm long clusters of attractive dark red tubular flowers, each in April to May. The flowers are
hermaphroditeIn a biological context, a hermaphrodite is an animal or plant that has both male and female reproductive organs.Many taxonomic groups of animals , do not have separate sexes. In these groups, hermaphroditism is a normal condition, enabling a form of sexual reproduction in which both partners can...
. The smooth light brown fruits, about 3 cm in diameter, reach maturity in September and October.
There are two
varietiesIn botanical nomenclature, variety is a taxonomic rank below that of species: As such, it gets a ternary name .A variety will have an appearance distinct from other varieties, but will hybridize freely with those other varieties...
:
- Aesculus pavia var. pavia: typical Red Buckeye.
- Aesculus pavia var. flavescens: yellow-flowered Red Buckeye.
The yellow-flowered variety,
var. flavescens, is found in higher country in Texas, and hybrids with intermediate flower color occur.
The flowers are attractive to
hummingbirdHummingbirds are among the smallest of birds, and include the smallest extant bird species, the Bee Hummingbirds. They can hover in mid-air by rapidly flapping their wings 12-90 times per second . They can also fly backwards, and are the only group of birds able to do so. Their English name derives...
s as well as
beeBees are flying insects closely related to wasps and ants, and are known for their role in pollination and for producing honey and beeswax. Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfamily Apoidea, presently classified by the unranked taxon name Anthophila...
s. The fruits are rich in
saponinSaponins are a class of chemical compounds, one of many secondary metabolites found in natural sources, with saponins found in particular abundance in various plant species...
s, which are poisonous to humans, though not particularly dangerous because they are not easily ingested. The oils can be extracted to make
soapSoap is an anionic surfactant used in conjunction with water for washing and cleaning, which historically comes either in solid bars or in the form of a viscous liquid....
, though this is not commercially viable.
Ornamental
cultivarA cultivar is a cultivated plant that has been selected and given a unique name because of desired characteristics; it is usually distinct from similar plants and when propagated it retains those characteristics....
s such as the low-growing 'Humilis' have been selected for garden use.
Red Buckeye has hybridised with Common Horse-chestnut (
Aesculus hippocastanum) in cultivation, the hybrid being named
Aesculus × carneaAesculus × carnea is a hybrid between the Red Buckeye and the Common Horse-chestnut . The origin of the tree is not known, but it is probably a chance garden hybrid, appearing in Germany before 1820...
, Red Horse-chestnut. The hybrid is a medium-size tree to 20-25 m tall, intermediate between the parent species in most respects, but inheriting the red flower color from
A. pavia. It is a popular tree in large
gardenA garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the display, cultivation, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The garden can incorporate both natural and man-made materials. The most common form is known as a residential garden. Western gardens are almost universally...
s and
parkA park is a protected area, in its natural or semi-natural state or planted, and set aside for human recreation and enjoyment. It may consist of, rocks, soil, water, flora and fauna and grass areas....
s, most commonly the selected
cultivarA cultivar is a cultivated plant that has been selected and given a unique name because of desired characteristics; it is usually distinct from similar plants and when propagated it retains those characteristics....
'Briotii'. Hybrids of Red Buckeye with
Yellow BuckeyeYellow Buckeye is a species of buckeye native to the Ohio Valley and Appalachian Mountains of the Eastern United States. It is a medium-sized deciduous tree growing to 20-35 m tall....
(
A. flava) have also been found, and named
Aesculus × hybrida.
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