Georgia Gardener Newsletter
Ask An Arborist: June 6, 2013
| Ohio Buckeyes in the South |
Janine from Birmingham, AL writes:
I’m a native and recent transplant from Ohio. I really would like to grow an Ohio buckeye in my yard but none of the nurseries here carry the tree. I’m wondering if I would have better luck finding
one in an Atlanta nursery.
I know how almost heart breaking it can be to from another part of the country or world and to find yourself in the South without the plants you know and love. Perhaps the most common question we get from
northern transplants is how to grow lilacs in Georgia. It's tough and they do not perform as well here as they do in colder climates. I usually direct people to the "lilacs-of-the-South" (aka crape myrtles)
for similar flowers or native azaleas for the fragrance. I'm afraid the answer is going to be similar for your Ohio buckeye (Aesculus glabra), the state tree of Ohio.
Ohio buckeyes perform best in zones 4 (-30°F) to 7 (0°F) where the winters are cold and the summers are a little cooler and a bit shorter than in the South. I think an Ohio buckeye would not perform well
in the heat and long months of a Southern summer. All is not lost, if you're willing to accept
another type of buckeye. There are several species of buckeye (some native) that do very well in all parts of Alabama and Georgia. My favorites are the red buckeye (Aesculus pavia) which is a small tree with the
most stunning red flowers and the bottlebrush buckeye (Aesculus parviflora) which has creamy white flowers like the Ohio buckeye, but grows as a large shrub. All of these produce the characteristic buckeye seed often
kept for good luck, but is highly toxic.
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| Red Buckeye |
Bottlebrush Buckeye |
Of course, there is no harm in trying. If you are really set on growing an Ohio buckeye, I say give it a try. You may not be able to find it in a Southern nursery, but they are available by mail order. I would
wait to plant until the fall.
Please email me if you have any questions or topics you would like to submit
for later articles.
If you are concerned about the trees in your landscape, you can contact
the Georgia Arborist Association.
Unless otherwise noted, Images & Drawings Copyrighted © 2013 by Theresa Schrum - All rights reserved
