Appendices & Glossary - Botanical Research Institute of Texas

1316 APPENDIX TWENTY-ONE/COMMERCIALLY IMPORTANT TIMBER TREES OF EAST TEXAS
NYSSA SYLVATICA Marshall BLACK TUPELO
(CORNACEAE, DOGWOOD FAMILY)
Other Common Names: BLACK-GUM, SOUR-GUM, PEPPERIDGE, TUPELO, TUPELO-GUM, COTTON-GUM
Form and Size: medium-size tree to 30(–40) m; trunk straight, to 2 m in diameter, usually unbranched nearly to the top;
crown narrow, oblong, with a flattened top.
Leaves: deciduous, simple, alternate, often crowded near the tips of the branchlets, the blades to ca. 5–10(–15) cm long and
2.5–7(–10) cm wide, obovate to widely elliptic, blunt or short broad-pointed at the tip, rounded to tapering at the base,
wavy, entire or rarely few-toothed above middle, thin-textured, dark green and shiny above, paler and often hairy below,
turning bright crimson or burgundy in fall; this species is among the first to show fall color, with a few leaves turning
by late August; petioles 1–2.5 cm long
Buds: 3–6 mm long, blunt or rounded at the tip, covered with overlapping, dark brown scales.
Flowers: unisexual, male and female flowers on different trees (plants dioecious) or some bisexual flowers present (plants
polygamo-dioecious), appearing in early spring at the base of new leaves (when the leaves are nearly fully expanded),
small, greenish, with reputation as excellent source of nectar for bees (e.g., tupelo honey); male flowers in dense, manyflowered
heads, the heads on slender stalks; female flowers in small greenish clusters of 2–8.
Fruits: a one-seeded, blue-black, ellipsoid to subglobose drupe, 10–15 mm long, on peduncles to 7 cm long, often 2–3 together,
ripening in fall.
Bark: gray or light to dark brown, rough, becoming deeply furrowed, with scaly longitudinal ridges, sometimes compared
to alligator hide.
Wood: sapwood white to grayish white, gradually merging into the darker heartwood; heartwood greenish or brownish
gray; grain usually interlocked (making it very difficult to split) and hence showing a distinct ribbon figure when
quarter-sawn; growth rings usually indistinct, even under a lens.
Habitat: swamps, low woods and open woods, terraces, poorly drained sites.
Range: Pineywoods and Post Oak Savannah; widespread in the eastern U.S. west to TX and OK.
Principal Uses: this species became commercially important only with the development of pressure treatment (previously
it warped and shrank excessively); veneer used for fruit and berry boxes and similar containers, other boxes,
crates, and pallets (color shows stenciling well), furniture, kitchen cabinets, plywood for panels, railroad ties, planingmill
products, pulp, cigar boxes, woodenware, handles.
Historical Uses: not a historically important species, though used for applications where the interlocked grain and consequent
difficulty of splitting proved an advantage—e.g., tool handles, agricultural equipment, factory floors, docks.
Other Significant Information: the striking autumn leaf coloration and abundant blue-black fruit make these trees excellent
as ornamentals and for shade. The common name TUPELO is apparently derived from the Native American Creek
language: eto, tree, and opelwv, swamp. The fruits (rich in lipids) are an important wildlife food and the tree, which is
known as a cavity producer, is an important den tree for wildlife. Nyssa biflora Walter, SWAMP TUPELO, is sometimes
treated as a variety of this species; when submerged the base of its trunk is conspicuously swollen.
Recognition in the Field: trees with leaves alternate, simple, entire or rarely few-toothed above the middle and fruits oneseeded,
blue-black, ellipsoid to subglobose, stalked drupes, 10–15 mm long, often 2–3 together.