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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. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

71
Strong

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

Profile 100%

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

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At a glance

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

Recorded in 8 West Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 2

Moist forests

Woods Scene
Harvey Joiner, Woods Scene: tall beeches in a moist Kentucky woodland, light falling through a closed canopy onto a damp forest floor. Regional view: the painting does not name the exact site. Shown: Kentucky beech woods (Harvey Joiner, Louisville painter of Kentucky beech forests; the painting does not name the site), a neighboring state.Woods Scene, Harvey Joiner, c. 1880-1920. Public domain. Source record.

Rich cove forests

Sheltered, moist mountain hollows and lower slopes with deep, fertile soil.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in West Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 90 animals.

Widespread birds also seen here (49)

Found in many habitats here, so not listed above.

All wildlife of West Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

35CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including WV

Genus host records with ranges including WV · 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 35
  • 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
  • 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
  • Olethreutes monetiferanum
  • Olethreutes ochrosuffusanum
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
Also known as

Aesculus octandra; Sweet Buckeye

Conservation status

West Virginia rankS5
Global rankG5
WV statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources