California Buckeye (Edible Plants on UC Berkeley Campus)

California Buckeye

Aesculus californica

Common names ³

California buckeye
buckeye
horsechestnut

Description ⁴

General: Buckeye Family (Hippocastanaceae). This native, deciduous shrub or tree reaches 12 m in height with a broad, rounded crown. The palmately compound leaves occur in leaflets of 5 to 7 and each leaflet is oblong-lanceolate and finely serrate. The inflorescence has many showy flowers in a panicle-like arrangement and it is erect, 1-2 dm. in length. Each individual flower has 4-5 petals and these are white to pale rose with 5-7 exserted stamens. The fruit is pear-shaped and smooth. The large, shiny light-brown seeds are 2-5 cm.

Habitat characteristics ⁵

California buckeye grows on dry slopes, in canyons, and along waterways
[5,21]. In the Central Valley it occurs along stream and river banks
[5,19]. It is associated with poison-oak (Toxicodendron diversilobum)
in most communities in which it occurs [5,17].

Soil: California buckeye grows in sandy, sandy-loam, or gravelly-loam
soils [5].

Climate: California buckeye occurs in a Mediterranean climate with cool
moist winters and hot dry summers [5,15,18]. The mean annual rainfall
is less than 14 inches, and temperatures are in excess of 100 degrees
Fahrenheit (38 degrees C) for several successive days every summer [14].

Elevation: California buckeye occurs below 4,000 feet (1,219 m) [21].

Edible ⁶

The fruit from this tree is a little less appealing than an acorn but nonetheless edible. However, be warned that without proper leaching with hot water, the fruit is toxic. Though in the end, the fruit has more tons of fruit produced per year, it also has less edible meat per so in the end, an acorn is more desirable.