Red buckeye will often go dormant long before most trees, so don't be alarmed if your tree drops its leaves in what seems like the middle of the summer. It will come back next spring just fine!

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The Red Buckeye grows in the wild in wet mesic to dry mesic sites at swamp margins, streamsides, low rich woods, or upland sites in or near woods in a range from coastal North & South Carolina into the north half of Florida, the southern half of Georgia, almost all of Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Arkansas, east & south central Texas, southeast Missouri and southern Illinois. It has palmate leaves with 5 leaflets that only turn yellow-green in autumn. It grows about 1 foot/year. It has a fibrous, but deep descending root system, so it is difficult to transplant. It is sold by large, diverse nurseries in the South, the Mid-Atlantic, the Northeast, and the Midwest and by native plant nurseries. Red Buckeye is a neat, clean, interesting, and beautiful large shrub to small tree. I first saw a small tree form at Cantigny War Museum & Gardens in Wheaton, IL in the early 1980's. It is sort of expensive to buy and not well-known by the general public, so I see it at some estates or professional landscapes.

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Honey bees get nectar and pollen from this plant.

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Easy to grow. Plant fresh seeds immediately for best results. Seeds may or may not last long in storage. Difficult to transplant once in ground. Very long tap root is easily broken when digging. Sow in pots for later transplanting, or plant seed(s) where long-term growth is desired and thin later.

Makes a very nice accent plant/small tree in sun or semi shade.

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Leaves fall early in the fall with little color. This species normally occurs in light shade, but can be planted in a sunny location with good soil moisture.

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