Photo: Schlurcher, CC BY 4.0 · source

Tree · Sapindaceae

Yellow buckeye

Aesculus flava

In other languages: Gele pavia (Nederlands) · Pavier jaune (Français)

The yellow buckeye is a North American relative of the horse chestnut, from the moist woods and river valleys of the Appalachians and the Ohio Valley. It is a medium-sized tree with a rounded to oval crown and hand-shaped leaves, usually with five leaflets. In May–June, upright panicles of greenish-yellow to creamy yellow, tubular flowers stand above the leaves and attract bumblebees and bees. In autumn the leaves turn a fine orange to yellow. The fruits have a smooth husk without spines and contain glossy brown, poisonous seeds.

Caution: All parts are poisonous, especially the seeds, but also the leaves, young shoots and bark. The seeds look like sweet chestnuts but are not edible. A danger to children, to dogs that chew the seeds and to horses and livestock that eat leaves or seeds. Pick up the seeds and do not plant it next to a field.

Updated on 10 October 2026

Light
Sun or partial shade
preferably some sun
Moisture
Normal to wet
must not dry out
Legal basis
Sand, loam or clay
any pH
Hardiness
Fully hardy
down to -30 °C
Size
15 m
tall, 10 m wide
Flowering
May–June

Key facts
Pruning months	January–February
Height	15 m
Native to Belgium	No, planted
Good for bees, butterflies and birds	Yes, for bees
Poisonous to people and pets	Yes, take care with children and pets
Flowering	May–June

Identify

Yellow buckeye: how do you recognise it?

Habit: Medium-sized tree, 12–15 m tall and 8–10 m wide, with a rounded to oval crown.
Leaves: Palmately compound, usually five toothed leaflets 10–20 cm long; fresh green, orange to yellow in autumn.
Flower: Greenish-yellow to creamy yellow tubular flowers in upright panicles 10–15 cm long, in May–June.
Fruit: Round, smooth husk without spines, holding one to three glossy brown seeds with a pale spot; poisonous.
Bark: Grey-brown; on older trees it flakes off in large, irregular plates.

Flowering: May–June · Plants: March–April and October–December · Pruning: January–February

In your garden

Why grow it?

A lesser-known, elegant ‘chestnut’ with yellow rather than white flowers.
Flowers in May–June, busy with bumblebees and bees.
One of the best autumn colours among the horse chestnuts: orange to golden yellow.
Large, hand-shaped leaves that cast cool, dense shade.
On older trees, attractive bark that flakes off in plates.

Yellow buckeye: where does it grow best?

Sun to partial shade; in sun it flowers more and colours better.
Deep, fertile, moisture-retentive soil: sand, loam or clay, acid to chalky.
Moderately moist to moist: dry soil causes brown leaf edges and early leaf fall.
Allow 8–10 m of space and do not plant it next to a field with horses or livestock, nor ideally where young children play.

Light: Sun and partial shade
Soil type: Sand, loam or clay
Acidity: Not fussy
Moisture: Normal or wet
Size: 15 m tall, 10 m wide
Hardiness: Hardy (to -30 °C)

Goes well with

Wood anemone: A white carpet in spring beneath the still-bare crown.
Ferns: Fresh underplanting for the moist partial shade under the tree.
Hosta: Large leaves in the same moisture-retentive soil.
Astilbe: Pink and white plumes in a moist, partly shaded spot at the edge of the crown.

Maintenance

Yellow buckeye: when and how to plant it?

Plant in March–April and October–December.

Plant in March–April or from October to December, when the soil is not frozen or waterlogged.
Dig a generous hole, twice as wide as the root ball, and mix in compost.
Set the tree at the same depth as it was in the pot: the root flare should stay just visible.
Secure a standard tree to a stake on the windward side and tie it loosely.
Water straight away with 20–30 litres and keep the soil moist during the first year.
Mulch round the base with leaf mould or wood chips, keeping it off the trunk.

Care

Water: For the first few years, water generously every week in dry spells. Older trees also benefit from a good soak in a hot summer.
Feeding: A little compost round the base in spring; no more is needed.
Mulching: A layer of leaf mould keeps the soil cool and moist, which it likes.
Fallen leaves: Rake up the leaves in autumn if they had leaf blotch, so that less of the fungus overwinters.
Seeds: Pick up fallen seeds in autumn if children or pets play in the garden.

Tip: Give it deep, moisture-retentive soil and mulch every spring: the leaves then stay healthy until autumn and turn a fine orange.

Yellow buckeye: when to prune it?

Pruning months: January–February.

When: Pruning is rarely needed. If necessary, do it in January–February, when the tree is bare.

How:

Remove dead, diseased and crossing branches, just outside the branch collar.
To walk beneath the crown, gradually remove the lowest side branches, one or two a year.
Saw off large branches in two stages to stop the bark tearing.
Never top the tree: the crown regrows ugly and weak.

Caution: Wear gloves when clearing up seeds and prunings, and do not let animals nibble the prunings.

Pruning: when and how · Pruning calendar and basic rules

Propagation

Seed: Sow fresh seeds straight away in autumn, a few cm deep in a deep pot or in open ground, and protect them from mice. Do not let them dry out: they will no longer germinate.
Grafting: Special forms are grafted by nurseries onto a seedling of a related species.

Yellow buckeye: how does it get through the winter?

Hardy to −30 °C.

Very hardy, to about −30 °C: in Belgium no protection is needed.
Protect young trees from rabbits and deer with a tree guard.
The large, pointed buds are easy to see in winter; unlike those of the horse chestnut, they are not sticky.

Diseases and pests

Leaf blotch: Large reddish-brown blotches with a yellow edge on the leaves, from summer onwards. Rake up the fallen leaves; the tree itself suffers little.
Leaf scorch: Brown, dried leaf edges and early leaf fall in a hot, dry summer. Water generously and mulch the base.
Powdery mildew: White powder on the leaves in late summer. Usually harmless; keep the soil moist enough.
Coral spot: Small pinkish-orange pustules on dead twigs. Cut dead wood back into healthy wood.

Through the year

January: Prune if needed, in frost-free weather.
February: Last pruning. Check tree guards on young trees.
March: Plant. Give compost round the base.
April: Plant. The buds open.
May: Greenish-yellow flower panicles; bumblebees and bees.
June: Flowering. Water in dry spells.
July: Water generously in heat and drought.
September: The fruits ripen and fall. Pick up seeds if there are children or pets.
October: Orange autumn colour. Plant. Sow fresh seeds straight away.
November: Plant. Rake up blotched leaves.
December: Plant in frost-free weather.

Use

Edible and useful

Not edible. Buckeyes and horse chestnuts are poisonous in all their parts, especially the shiny brown seeds: they cause vomiting, stomach ache and diarrhoea. Children take them for sweet chestnuts, but those come two or three to a husk covered in fine, sharp spines, with one flat side and a pointed tip ending in a little tuft; these seeds sit in a smooth husk, are round and have a large pale patch. Dogs that chew them become ill, and a swallowed seed can block the gut. Pick up the seeds where children or animals play, and do not plant them next to a field with horses or livestock. If any is swallowed, call a poison centre (in Belgium 070 245 245) or your doctor at once.

Good for wildlife

Bees: Nectar and pollen for honeybees and wild bees.

You and this species

Did you know?

The name buckeye refers to the seed: glossy brown with a pale spot, like the eye of a deer.
In its American forests it is the largest of the buckeyes; old trees there grow far taller than in a garden.
It used to be called Aesculus octandra, a name still found on old labels.

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