Nyssa sylvatica Marshall var. dilatata Fernald
Nyssa sylvatica Marshall var. typica Fernald
Nyssa sylvatica Marshall
Black gum, black tupelo, swamp tupelo
Black gum is native to eastern North America.
Plants: Black gum trees are 30–80′ (9.1–24 m) tall and 20–30′ (6.1–9.1 m) wide. The trunks are 1½–3′ (50–100 cm) in diameter. Dark gray bark becomes deeply cracked and scaly in appearance on older trees.
Leaves: Approximately oval-shaped, wider toward the end of the leaf, 1¾–4½″ (5–12 cm) long. They are somewhat to very shiny, dark green, and typically smooth-edged. In the fall, leaves become dark purple or scarlet.
Flowers: Inconspicuous flowers are greenish-white, though they do have the rather unusual distinction of being polygamo-dioecious, in case you are keeping track. This means that trees have mostly either male or female flowers, but a few of the opposite sex as well, yet another variation in the confusing sexuality of plants.
Fruits: Black or blue in color, about ⅜″ (1 cm) long.
Habitats: There are two subspecies. Black tupelo (N. sylvatica var. sylvatica) favors light-textured soils of uplands and stream bottoms. Swamp tupelo (N. sylvatica var. biflor) prefers heavy organic or clay soils of wet bottom lands.
Online References:
Nyssa sylvatica Marshall var. caroliniana (Poir.) Fernald
Nyssa sylvatica Marshall var. dilatata Fernald
Nyssa sylvatica Marshall var. typica Fernald
Nyssa sylvatica Marshall var. dilatata Fernald
Nyssa sylvatica Marshall var. typica Fernald
8/14/2010 · George & Jan’s, Chelmsford, Massachusetts · ≈ 2 × 1′ (62 × 41 cm) 
10/3/2010 · Tarkill Interpretive Trail, Rte 402, Poconos, Peck’s Pond, Pennsylvania 
8/3/2025 · Saco Heath Preserve, Saco, Maine · ≈ 8 × 6″ (19 × 16 cm) 
5/14/2012 · Acton Arboretum, Acton, Massachusetts · ≈ 9 × 6″ (23 × 15 cm) 
8/14/2010 · George & Jan’s, Chelmsford, Massachusetts 
8/14/2010 · George & Jan’s, Chelmsford, Massachusetts 
9/14/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts · ≈ 6 × 9″ (15 × 23 cm) 
8/14/2010 · George & Jan’s, Chelmsford, Massachusetts · ≈ 1½ × 1′ (53 × 41 cm) 
8/3/2025 · Saco Heath Preserve, Saco, Maine 
10/3/2010 · Tarkill Interpretive Trail, Rte 402, Poconos, Peck’s Pond, Pennsylvania 
9/14/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (17 × 11 cm) 
| Kingdom | Plantae | Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin) |
| Subkingdom | Tracheobionta | Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients |
| Division | Magnoliophyta | Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms |
| Class | Magnoliopsida | Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves |
| Subclass | Asteridae | A large class that encompasses asters |
| Order | Cornales | Includes dogwoods, hydrangeas, stickleafs, tupelos, even sillyberries |
| Family | Nyssaceae | Dogwood family, named for Nyssa, tupelo |
| Genus | Nyssa | A Greek water nymph; tupelo means roughly “swamp-tree” |
| Species | sylvatica | A “woodland habitat” |
Nyssa sylvatica description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.
© FloraFinder.org. All rights reserved.