Tung-oil Tree
Vernicia fordii
Found in planted for the oil and for ornament, now extensively naturalized in moist to dry upland forests, bottomland forests, and disturbed areas. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you
Not native to Florida. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 82%
- Height
- 15–25 feet
- Spread
- 10–15 feet
- Light
- Full sun
- Soil moisture
- Dry to moist
Do not plant. Listed invasive in Florida.
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At a glance
- Life cycle
- Woody perennial
- Leaves
- Evergreen
- Bloom
- March to April
- Fruiting season
- April to August
Recorded in 24 Florida counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Forests and open woodlands on dry ridges and slopes, often oak or pine.
Floodplain and bottomland forests
Forests on low ground beside rivers and streams that flood from time to time.
Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground
Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.
Who uses this plant?
3CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including FL
Genus host records with ranges including FL · Vernicia
- Cryptothelea nigritaNigrita Bagworm Moth
- Helicoverpa zeaCorn Earworm Moth
- Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
—Specialist beesPollen specialists
—BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claimPlant details
- Family
- Euphorbiaceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 8a–11b
- Soil pH
- Acidic to alkaline
- Flower color
- Pink or white
- Fruit begins
- April
- Fruit ends
- August
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “March to April” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Pink or white” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Fruit begins · “April” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Fruit ends · “August” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Hardiness · “Zones 8a–11b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Height · “15–25 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Leaves · “Evergreen” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Life cycle · “Woody perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Soil · “Dry; Moist (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Soil pH · “Acidic to alkaline” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Spread · “10–15 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as
Tung oil Tree
Conservation status
| Florida rank | SNA |
|---|---|
| Global rank | GNR |
| FL status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Sources
- Atlas of Florida Plants
- Florida Invasive Species Council list
- USDA PLANTS
- NatureServe Explorer
- Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
- Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)
- Narango, Tallamy & Shropshire 2020, Few keystone plant genera support the majority of Lepidoptera species, Nature Communications