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California Buckeye
Aesculus californica
  
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About California Buckeye (Aesculus californica) California Buckeye or California Horse-chestnut is a species in the Sapindaceae family that is endemic to California, and the only buckeye native to the state. It is found over a large part of the state. It is a large shrub or small tree growing to 4-12 meters tall, with gray bark often coated with lichens or mosses. It typically is multi-trunked with a crown as broad as it is high. The leaves are dark green with five (rarely seven) leaflets, each leaflet 6-17 centimeters long, with a finely toothed margin and (particularly in spring) downy surfaces. The leaves are tender and prone to damage from both spring freezing or snow and summer heat and desiccation. It tends to drop its leaves readily. Caution should be exercised in using this plant in the garden because the fruits are toxic.

This plant is very drought tolerant, but looks better with some water. Native (white flowered) varieties seem to have lower water requirements.
Plant Description
Plant Type
Tree

Max. Height
13.1 - 39.4 ft (4 - 12 m)

Max. Width
40 ft (12.2 m)

Form
Upright, Rounded

Growth Rate
Moderate

Dormancy
Summer Deciduous, Winter Deciduous

Flower Color
White, Cream

Flowering Season
Spring, Summer
Spring
Summer
Fall
Winter


Native Status
Native

Natural Setting
Site Type
Dry slopes, canyons or stream edges, most often in the Coast Ranges or Sierra foothills.

Sun
Part Shade, Sun

Elevation ?
4' - 10807'

Annual Precip. ?
5.8" - 109.8"

Summer Precip. ?
0.17" - 2.49"

Coldest Month ?
28.2° F - 56.6° F

Hottest Month ?
49.8° F - 78.5° F

Humidity ?
0.08 vpd - 29.30 vpd

Soil Description
Tolerates a variety of soils including clay

Soil PH
4.0 - 8.0

Soil Toxicity Tolerance
Tolerates Serpentine Soil

Drainage
Medium, Slow

Cold Tolerance(° F)
Tolerates cold to -5° F

Sunset Zones ?
3, 4, 5, 6, 7*, 8*, 9*, 10, 14*, 15*, 16*, 17*, 18*, 19*, 20*, 21*, 22*, 23*, 24*

Companion Plants
Western Serviceberry (Amelanchier pallida or utahensis), Manzanita (Arctostaphylos sp.), Milkweed (Asclepias sp.), Spicebush (Calycanthus occidentalis), Ceanothus sp., Larkspur (Delphinium sp.), Buckwheat (Erogonum sp.), Coffeeberry (Frangula californica), White Pitchersage (Lepechinia calycina), Sticky Monkeyflower (Mimulus aurantiacus), Chokecherry (Prunus virginiana), Oak (Quercus sp.), Redberry (Rhamnus crocea), Currant (Ribes sp.), Hummingbird Sage (Salvia spathacea), Blue-eyed Grass (Sisyrinchium bellum), as well as numerous annual wildflowers.

Wildlife Attracted
Native insects including several butterfly species are attracted to the flowers. It is said to be toxic to non-native bees

Landscaping Information
Ease of Care
Very Easy

Water Requirement ?
Very Low, Low
Extremely Low
Very Low
Low
Moderate - High


Popularity
Moderately Popular

Max. Summer Water ?
1x/month, 2x/month, 3x/month
No Summer Water
1x/month
2x/month
3x/month
1/week
Keep moist


Propagation ?
For propagating by seed: No treatment; use fresh seeds.

Common uses
Hedges, Bank Stabilization, Deer Resistant, Butterfly Gardens

Nursery Availability
Commonly Available

Nurseries
Acorn Cap Native Plant Nursery, Bay Natives, California Flora Nursery, Capitol Wholesale Nursery, Central Coast Wilds, CNL Native Plant Nursery, CNPS SCV Nursery, East Bay Wilds, El Nativo Growers, Inc., Elderberry Farms Native Plant Nursery, Elkhorn Native Plant Nursery, Floral Native Nursery, Flourish, Friends of Sausal Creek Native Plant Nursery, GGNRA Parks Conservancy -Native Plant Nursery, Gold Rush Nursery, Grow Native Nursery - Rancho Santa Ana Botanical Garden, High Ranch Nursery, Las Pilitas, Manzanita Nursery, Matilija Nursery, Moosa Creek Nursery, Mostly Natives Nursery, Native Here Nursery, Native Revival Nursery, Native Springs Nursery, O'Donnell's Fairfax Nursery, Oaktown Native Plant Nursery, Our City Forest Nursery, Rana Creek Wholesale Nursery, Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden - Grow Native Nursery, RECON Native Plants, San Bruno Mountain Watch, San Marcos Growers, Sierra Seed Supply, Suncrest Nurseries, Inc, Theodore Payne Foundation, Tree of Life Nursery, UC Botanical Garden California Native Plants Nursery, Walker Avenue Nursery, Yerba Buena Nursery

Other Names
Common Names
California Horse Chestnut, Shrub California Buckeye


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Sources include: Wikipedia. All text shown in the "About" section of these pages is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Plant observation data provided by the participants of the California Consortia of Herbaria, Sunset information provided by Jepson Flora Project. Propogation from seed information provided by the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden from "Seed Propagation of Native California Plants" by Dara E. Emery. Sources of plant photos include CalPhotos, Wikimedia Commons, and independent plant photographers who have agreed to share their images with Calscape. Other general sources of information include Calflora, CNPS Manual of Vegetation Online, Jepson Flora Project, Las Pilitas, Theodore Payne, Tree of Life, The Xerces Society, and information provided by CNPS volunteer editors, with special thanks to Don Rideout. Climate data used in creation of plant range maps is from PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, using 30 year (1981-2010) annual "normals" at an 800 meter spatial resolution.

Links:   Jepson eFlora Taxon Page  CalPhotos  Wikipedia  Calflora


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