Illustration
Red Buckeye
Aesculus pavia
Also called scarlet buckeye, firecracker plant and red horse chestnut
Also comes in orange.
Red Buckeye blooms from April through May.
Months here are Northern Hemisphere months; in the Southern Hemisphere, shift them by six months.
Growing Red Buckeye
Plant it in part shade. It prefers moderate water. It is hardy in USDA zones 4–8. Expect it to reach about 16 ft tall and 15 ft wide at maturity, in roughly 15 years (a house reading).
Is Red Buckeye toxic to dogs or cats?
- Listed as toxic to dogs by NC State Extension and Royal Horticultural Society.
- Listed as toxic to cats by NC State Extension.
- Listed as poisonous to people by NC State Extension and Royal Horticultural Society.
Lists differ and none is complete. If a pet eats a plant and seems unwell, call a veterinarian or a pet poison helpline.
What was checked
Nine facts were checked against named botanical sources, each recorded beside the sources that carried it: mature height and spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color, the trait tags, and years to mature size, which rests on a recorded house rule where no publisher states one and is marked so. Soil, diseases, pests, toxicity and the plant's own names have not yet been read for this plant, and its trait tags are the ones a feature uses rather than every word a page prints. Each fact above carries its own mark. The planting, spacing and size sections are derived from these checked facts by a fixed rule, not checked separately, and the plant type is the library's own classification.
When to plant Red Buckeye
Plant Red Buckeye in early spring as soon as the soil is workable, or in early fall at least six weeks before your first frost, so roots establish in cool weather. In zone 6, the middle of its hardy zones 4 to 8, spring means March to May and fall means August or September. Once settled, it blooms from April to May.
Month-by-month timing for your zone is on the planting calendar; if you garden near zone 6, the middle of this plant's hardy range, start with zone 6 in March. Derived from the plant's category, zones and bloom months plus typical zone frost dates, not checked separately.
How big does Red Buckeye get?
16 fttall5 ft 7 inan adult15 ftwideSee Red Buckeye in a garden plan: the planner shows it in 3D beside everything else you add, growing toward this size over the years.
How far apart to plant Red Buckeye
Derived from the mature spread above by a fixed rule, not checked separately: spacing is the spread, center to center.
Give Red Buckeye about 15 ft of clear ground in every direction, measured from its center. It is one plant with room around it, not a row, and a raised bed is too small for it.
Add Red Buckeye to a garden plan and the planner draws it at its full width, so you see the spacing before you buy.
Where these facts come from
Red Buckeye's height, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags were checked against 8 published sources on October 23, 2026. Each one is linked below with every fact it carried, which can include a fact this page still marks as not yet checked, because a source carrying a value is not the same as the value being held to the standard. Facts not in that list, and the planting, spacing and size sections, are not covered by these sources.
- Missouri Botanical GardenPlant Finderheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags
- NC State ExtensionGardener Plant Toolboxheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags
- The Morton Arboretumheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags
- pubs.ext.vt.eduVirginia Cooperative Extension, Virginia Techheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water and bloom months and color
- dancingoaks.comDancing Oaks Nursery and Gardensheight, spread, sun, water and bloom months and color
- extension.missouri.eduUniversity of Missouri Extensionheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun and bloom months and color
- University of Illinois Extensionheight, hardiness zones, sun, water and bloom months and color
- RHSRoyal Horticultural Societyheight, sun and bloom months and color
How the checking works, and what each standard covers, is on the verified plants page.
Where it grows wild
Native to 15 states
United States: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, West Virginia and 3 more
Recorded growing wild in 439 counties.
Also grows wild, but is not native, in Maryland.
Range data from the World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 4.0, adapted) and USDA PLANTS. How the native range is credited.
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Design a garden with this
Drop this plant onto a 3D plan, see how it fills in, and watch your whole garden bloom across the year.