Try growing an Ohio buckeye tree

By TERRY SHEARS

OSU Extension Master Gardener Volunteer

CANFIELD

It’s the symbol of our state, our state tree, and the mascot of our largest university in Columbus. So how about trying to plant an Ohio buckeye tree in your yard?

Consider the positives and negatives firsts.

On the positive side, the Ohio buckeye makes a good yard tree, with fall being a good time for planting.

It has large, showy, greenish-yellow spring flowers, pumpkin-orange fall leaves, and eventually lots of rich-brown nuts. The nuts are toxic, however, as are all parts of the buckeye if taken internally. But, they are great for crafts, especially for fans of the Scarlet and Gray.

Buckeye trees need moist – but not wet – soil, and they should be planted in partial shade as a young tree. As the tree can eventually reach 50 feet tall, it does not make a good focal point in the landscape, but tucked in a back or side yard it can flourish.

Its dense leaf canopy means grass won’t grow underneath, but that can mean less mowing and easier gathering of the nuts.

You can grow a tree from the nuts, and this is the time to think about it. Gather seeds when the greenish fruit splits open to reveal shiny, light brown seeds, in the middle of autumn.

The color, shine, and size of this seed resembles a buck’s eye, thus the name. Wear gloves when gathering seeds as they can be irritating to the skin. Peel the fruit and toss it. Soak seeds for 24 hours in cold water to soften the outer hull. Drain the water and place seeds in a shady place.

Fill nursery containers with a mix of one part sand and three parts garden soil. Saturate the mixture with water and sow one buckeye in each container. Dig a planting hole half the diameter of the seed. A 1-inch seed would need a Ω-inch deep planting hole. Plant the seed with the pale patch on the tip completely covered. Press it in gently and put a thin layer of sand over the seed.

Place containers against a sheltered south-facing wall. Water the seeds only if no rain falls for longer than a week. Seeds should germinate in three weeks. They are not fussy and should sprout with minimal attention. Leave them there until spring.

In the spring, transplant the tree where its permanent home will be one or two weeks after the last frost, probably near the end of May.

Then watch your state tree grow. Go Bucks! And remember: Don’t eat the nuts.

To learn about some of the buckeyes on OSU’s campus and for descriptions of the different types of buckeye trees, go to: http://go.osu.edu/plantabuckeye.