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Yellow Buckeye

Aesculus flava

Found in moist forests, up to nearly 2000 m, especially prominent in seepy cove forests, in the Piedmont only in ‘montane’ habitats. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

72
Strong

Native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?

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Height
40–60 feet
Spread
30–40 feet
Light
Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Usually moist

Space about 30 ft apart from its recorded spread. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Woody perennial
Leaves
Deciduous
Bloom
April and June
Fruiting season
August to September

Recorded in 37 Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement.

1 of 2

Moist forests

Shortia beneath rhododendrons in mountain woodland
Regional / representative. Shown: Mountains of North and South Carolina; exact site not identified, a neighboring state.Shortia beneath rhododendrons in mountain woodland, Marian Ellis Rowan, 1901. Public domain. Source record.

Rich cove forests

Cove hardwood forest
Regional / representative. Shown: Great Smoky Mountains National Park, North Carolina and Tennessee; representative habitat composite, not a documented exact viewpoint, a neighboring state.Cove hardwood forest, Hynes, Robert 'Bob', by 2012. Public domain. Source record.

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 140 animals.

All wildlife of Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

36CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Aesculus

  • Achatia distinctaDistinct Quaker
  • Acronicta americanaAmerican Dagger
  • Actias lunaLuna Moth
  • Antheraea polyphemusPolyphemus Moth
  • Archips argyrospilaFruit-Tree Leafroller Moth
  • Archips rileyanaSouthern Ugly-Nest Caterpillar Moth
  • Cecrita biundataWavy-Lined Heterocampa
  • Cecrita guttivittaMaple Prominent, Saddled Prominent
  • Celypha nr.Celypha Moth
  • Choristoneura rosaceanaOblique-Banded Leafroller Moth, Rosaceous Leaf Roller
Show all 36
  • Dasychira dorsipennataSharp-Lined Tussock Moth
  • Eacles imperialisImperial Moth, Imperial Spiny Caterpillar
  • Egira alternansAlternate Woodling
  • Ennomos subsignariaElm Spanworm Moth
  • Epiglaea declivaSloping Sallow
  • Halysidota tessellarisBanded Tussock Moth, Pale Tiger Moth
  • Hyalophora cecropiaCecropia Silkmoth, Cecropia Moth
  • Hyphantria cuneaFall Webworm
  • Isa textulaCrowned Slug
  • Lithophane antennataAshen Pinion
  • Lithophane baileyiBailey's Pinion
  • Lithophane groteiGrote's Pinion, Green Fruit Worm
  • Lithophane joannisBuckeye Pinion
  • Lophocampa caryaeHickory Tussock Moth, Hickory Tiger Moth
  • Morrisonia confusaConfused Woodgrain
  • Nematocampa resistariaFilament Bearer, Horned Spanworm Moth
  • Oiketicus abbotiiAbbot's Bagworm Moth
  • Orgyia leucostigmaWhite-Marked Tussock Moth
  • Orthosia hibisciSpeckled Green Fruitworm Moth, Speckled Green Quaker
  • Proteoteras aesculanaMaple Seed Caterpillar, Maple Twig Borer
  • Psaphida rolandiRoland's Sallow
  • Pseudexentera spolianaBare-Patched Leafroller
  • Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformisEvergreen Bagworm Moth
  • Trigrammia quadrinotariaFour-Spotted Angle
  • Zeiraphera claypoleanaBuckeye Petiole Borer
  • Olethreutes monetiferanum
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
22BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Aesculus

Individual names are not available yet.

Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
—BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Sapindaceae
Hardiness
Zones 3a–8b
Soil pH
Acidic to neutral
Flower color
Cream, yellow or red
Growth rate
Moderate
Growth habit
Single stem
Foliage color
Green
Fruit begins
August
Fruit ends
September

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope
  • Bloom · “Late April to mid June” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • Flower color · “Cream, yellow or red” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs)
  • Foliage color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Fruit begins · “August” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • Fruit ends · “September” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • Growth habit · “Single stem” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Growth rate · “Moderate” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Hardiness · “Zones 3a–8b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Height · “40–60 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs)
  • Leaves · “Deciduous” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Life cycle · “Woody perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Virginia DCR Piedmont differs)
  • Soil · “Moist” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Virginia DCR Piedmont differs)
  • Soil pH · “Acidic to neutral” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Spread · “30–40 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as

Aesculus octandra; Sweet Buckeye

Conservation status

Virginia rankS4S5
Global rankG5
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources