Terms of flowering honey plants in the USA and Canada

According to observations of naturalists and beekeepers.

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Scientific name:

Ungnadia speciosa

Life form:

Tree, Shrub.

Flowering time:

10 days.

Flowering period

in Texas for this plant is: MarchJune.

NECTAR PRODUCTION:
Toxic for bees

SOURCE FOR HONEY BEES:
Minor


General distribution:

Mexican buckeye grows from the Edwards Plateau of south-central Texas west to Trans-Pecos Texas, and into southern New Mexico and northeastern Mexico.

Map of distribution and habitat in USA

This plant is present in at least 2 states/provinces in this country.

See The Map

Botanical description:

Mexican buckeye grows as an upright or spreading, multistemmed shrub or small tree. It commonly reaches 4 to 15 feet (1.2-4.6 m) in height but on favorable sites can grow to 30 feet (9.5 m) with trunk diameters of 10 inches (25.4 cm). The bark is a mottled light gray to brown, with shallow fissures developing on old trunks. Slender brown to orange, pubescent twigs become reddish-brown and glabrous with age. Some roots grow horizontally along the rock or soil surface while others extend deep into the vertical face of soft rock cliffs.

Leaves of Mexican buckeye are deciduous, alternate, and odd-pinnately compound. The three to seven ovate-lanceolate leaflets are leathery with crenate-serrate margins. The upper surface is dark green and glabrous, whereas the lower surface is paler and pubescent to glandular.

Small fragrant flowers are rose to purplish-pink and are borne in clusters on bare stems. The fruit is a woody, reddish-brown, three-lobed pod or capsule 1 to 1.5 inches (2.5-3.8 cm) in diameter. The shiny, dark brown to black, rounded seeds average approximately 0.4 to 0.6 inch (1-1.5 cm) in diameter. Seeds are smooth, leathery and "buckeye lake". Each capsule generally contains a single seed.

Seasonal development:

Mexican buckeye flowers approximately 10 days after buds first appear. In Trans-Pecos Texas, flowering occurs from March to June. Leaves develop soon after the flowers. Fruit ripens in July or as late as August or October. The fruit turns dark brown in the fall and unopened capsules may persist through the winter.


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List of honey plants that may be blooming now in Texas
See the entire list

Ulmus americana (aka: American elm, White elm, Water elm, Soft elm, Florida elm)

Salix nigra (aka: Black willow, Swamp willow, Southwestern black willow, Gulf black willow, Scythe-leaved willow)

Acer saccharinum (aka: Silver maple, Soft maple)

Cercis canadensis (aka: Eastern redbud, Redbud, Cersis Reniformis)

Malus angustifolia (aka: American crab apple, Buncombe crab apple, Crabtree, Narrowleaf crab, Narrowleaf crab apple, Southern crab, Southern crab apple)

Aronia arbutifolia (aka: Red chokeberry)

Amelanchier arborea (aka: Common serviceberry, Downy serviceberry, Juneberry, Shadbush, Shadblow, Sugarplum)

Salix gooddingii (aka: Goodding's willow, Dudley willow, Valley willow, Western black willow)

Prunus serotina (aka: Black cherry, Wild black cherry, Rum cherry, Mountain black cherry, Wild cherry)

Acer grandidentatum (aka: Bigtooth maple, Canyon maple, Western sugar maple)

Acer negundo (aka: Boxelder, Western boxelder, Arizona boxelder, California boxelder, Texas boxelder, Interior boxelder, Violet boxelder)

Robinia pseudoacacia (aka: Black locust, False acacia, Yellow locust, White locust, Green locust, Post locust, Falsa acacia, Robinia)

Celtis laevigata (aka: Hackberry, Sugarberry, Lowland hackberry, Sugar hackberry, Arizona sugarberry, Netleaf hackberry, Small's hackberry, Southern hackberry, Texas sugarberry)

Pyrus communis (aka: European pear, Common pear)

Ungnadia speciosa (aka: Mexican buckeye, Texas buckeye, Canyon buckeye, Spanish buckeye, New Mexican buckeye, New Mexico buckeye, False buckeye, Monillo, Monilla)