Buckeye | Identification, Uses & Facts (2024)

FAQs

What are some fun facts about buckeyes? ›

These seeds are popularly believed to bring good luck, and school children especially still carry them in their pockets as a charm. And while highly poisonous, buckeye seeds contain much protein and were used as a food source by Native Americans who boiled and leached them to remove their toxins.

Native Americans once used buckeyes for both nutritional and medicinal purposes. These tribes would crush and knead the nuts into a salve for rashes and cuts. Today, some believe that buckeyes can relieve rheumatism and arthritis pain. Prescription opioids were first created exclusively for pain relief.

Start with the basics: Water newly planted trees twice a week to foster root growth. Adjust for maturity: Once established, your Buckeye will be more drought-tolerant. Reduce watering frequency accordingly. Monitor the weather: Ramp up watering during dry spells, and pull back when rain is generous.

The buckeye tree (aesculus glabra) is native to North America. In late summer and early fall, the trees bear fruit that contain a large nut. The nut gives the tree its name because it is dark brown with a light spot, resembling the shape and color of a deer's eye. The buckeye was named the state tree of Ohio in 1953.

While gray squirrels and other animals do eat buckeyes, it is never a preferred food. In fact, both the seeds and tender young leaves of the plant are said to be poisonous to humans and livestock alike. Humans have long made use of the red buckeye. Native Americans were known to crush buckeye branches to catch fish.

The nuts are toxic and can't be eaten but find good uses in crafts, especially for fans of the Scarlet and Gray. “Ohio buckeye is native and is well-adapted to our soils and climate,” Snyder said. “But it's not well-suited to small yards as it tends to get quite large with age.” The tree can grow 50 feet high.

Native California tribes, including the Pomo, Yokut, and Luiseño, cleverly used the ground-up powder of buckeye seeds to stupefy schools of fish in small streams, making them easier to catch. And the smooth, straight branches of the buckeye made it useful to native peoples as a bow drill and a fire drill.

Medicinal Uses

Minute doses of the seed are used internally in the treatment of spasmodic coughs, asthma and internal irritations[222]. It is used externally as a tea or an ointment in the treatment of rheumatism and piles[222]. An extract of the bark has been used as an irritant of the cerebro-spinal system[82].

Storage Tips

Make sure your buckeyes stay fresh for as long as possible! The buckeyes should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator to keep them nice and fresh. Stored in this way, they will keep for about 1 month (although good luck keeping them that long without eating them all, ha!).

Seedlings can grow under some shade, but the species seems to develop best as isolated individuals in openings along streambanks and on other moist sites. Young trees show moderate growth rates and may begin producing fruit at 8 years. Most trees live 80-100 years.

Is the buckeye tree male or female? ›

Interestingly, each tree has both male and female flowers. The female flowers mature into distinctive spiny ball-like fruits.

The average time it takes for buckeye to produce seeds is 5-10 years, but they can start blooming as early as 3 years from seed in ideal conditions. I took this photo in June of a bottlebrush buckeye blooming in the shade of the old growth trees in Fernbank Forest.

Interesting Facts

Ohio buckeye is also referred to as stinking or fetid buckeye because the leaves and twigs give off an unpleasant odor (skunk-like) when crushed. The buckeye portion of the name derives from the fruits, which are mahogany brown with a large gray spot, resembling a buck's eye.

Durability: Buckeye wood has not resistance to wood decay, rating the wood as non-durable to perishable. Uses: Buckeye Burls are commonly used for electric guitar tops, pen blanks, and other small specialty items. Buckeye is good for carving and can be used to build low-strength pallets and crates.

You can plant buckeyes in full sun, but since they are adapted to live in forest understory, Smith recommends giving them partial shade. Be aware that buckeyes can reach 40 to 60 feet in height, though, so you won't want them in your flowerbed.

Ohio is known as the Buckeye State because buckeye trees were prevalent in the area when the territory was settled in the late 18th century. The buckeye gets its name from its distinctive nutlike seed that, when dried, appears a rich, dark brown color with a single lighter brown spot that resembles the eye of a deer.

It is a member of the Brushfoot family, named for the large colorful eye spots on the upper side of the wings. The eye spots may be used to scare away predators. The genus name (coenia) may be derived from June, the wife of Jupiter. Buckeyes are primarily a tropical group and cannot survive freezing temperatures.

The fruit from this tree is a little less appealing than an acorn but nonetheless edible. However, be warned that without proper leaching with hot water, the fruit is toxic.

During September, buckeyes, which are large, shiny brown seeds, can be found underneath Aesculus trees. According to legend, carrying a pocketful of buckeyes brings good luck. Early Native Americans called these seeds buckeyes for their resemblance to the eyes of male deer, known as bucks.