Tupelo , genus ''Nyssa'' , is a small

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...

s with alternate, simple leaves. It is sometimes included in the subfamily Nyssoideae of the

dogwood ''Cornus'' is a genus of about 30–60 species of woody plants in the family Cornaceae, commonly known as dogwoods, which can generally be distinguished by their blossoms, berries, and distinctive bark. Most are deciduous trees or shrub ...

family,

Cornaceae The Cornaceae are a cosmopolitan family of flowering plants in the order Cornales. The family contains approximately 85 species in two genera, ''Alangium'' and ''Cornus''. They are mostly trees and shrubs, which may be deciduous or evergreen, alt ...

, but is placed by other authorities in the family Nyssaceae. In the

APG IV system The APG IV system of flowering plant classification is the fourth version of a modern, mostly molecular-based, system of plant taxonomy for flowering plants (angiosperms) being developed by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group (APG). It was publishe ...

, it is placed in Nyssaceae. Most ''Nyssa'' species are highly tolerant of wet

soil Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life. Some scientific definitions distinguish ''dirt'' from ''soil'' by restricting the former te ...

s and

flood A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrol ...

ing, and some need such environments as habitat. Some of the species are

native Native may refer to: People * Jus soli, citizenship by right of birth * Indigenous peoples, peoples with a set of specific rights based on their historical ties to a particular territory ** Native Americans (disambiguation) In arts and entert ...

to eastern

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

, from southeastern

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

through the Eastern

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

and

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

. Other species are found in eastern and southeastern

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

, from

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

south through

Indochina Mainland Southeast Asia, also known as the Indochinese Peninsula or Indochina, is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the west an ...

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...

and southwest to the

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 100 ...

Names

The genus name ''Nyssa'' refers to a Greek

water nymph In Greek mythology, the naiads (; grc-gre, ναϊάδες, naïádes) are a type of female spirit, or nymph, presiding over fountains, wells, springs, streams, brooks and other bodies of fresh water. They are distinct from river gods, who ...

. The name tupelo, the common name used for ''Nyssa'', is of Native American origin, coming from the

Cree The Cree ( cr, néhinaw, script=Latn, , etc.; french: link=no, Cri) are a Indigenous peoples of the Americas, North American Indigenous people. They live primarily in Canada, where they form one of the country's largest First Nations in Canada ...

words ''ito'' 'tree' and ''opilwa'' 'swamp'; it was in use by the mid-18th century. This tree should not be confused with the tulip poplar, '' Liriodendron sp''. The city of

Tupelo, Mississippi Tupelo () is a city in and the county seat of Lee County, Mississippi, United States. With an estimated population of 38,300, Tupelo is the sixth-largest city in Mississippi and is considered a commercial, industrial, and cultural hub of North M ...

, is named for this tree.

Species

Between seven and ten living species of ''Nyssa'' are recognized: * ''

Nyssa aquatica ''Nyssa aquatica'', commonly called the water tupelo, cottongum, wild olive, large tupelo, tupelo-gum, or water-gum, is a large, long-lived tree in the tupelo genus ''(Nyssa)'' that grows in swamps and floodplains in the Southeastern United Stat ...

'' L. – Water tupelo (southeastern United States) * '' Nyssa biflora'' Walter (or ''Nyssa sylvatica'' var. ''biflora'') – Swamp tupelo, or swamp black-gum * ''

Nyssa javanica ''Nyssa javanica'' is a species of flowering plant in the tupelo family Nyssaceae. It is native to the eastern Himalayas, southern China, Southeast Asia, and western Malesia Malesia is a biogeographical region straddling the Equator and th ...

'' (Blume) Wangerin - Eastern Himalayas, Indochina, Borneo, Java, Sumatra * ''

Nyssa ogeche ''Nyssa ogeche'', commonly referred to as Ogeechee tupelo, white tupelo, river lime, ogeechee lime tree, sour gum or wild lime is a deciduous tree. Growing to 15 m (~50 ft), it is in flower from March to May, and the seeds ripen from August to O ...

'' W.Bartram ex Marshall – Ogeechee tupelo (southeastern United States) * ''

Nyssa sinensis ''Nyssa sinensis'' (Chinese tupelo) is a species of flowering plant in the family Cornaceae (or Nyssaceae), native to China and Vietnam. Growing to tall and wide, it is a broadly conical deciduous tree, with oval leaves long, which turn brillia ...

'' Oliv. – Chinese tupelo (southern China, Vietnam, Myanmar) * †'' Nyssa spatulata'' (Scott) Manchester (Extinct, Middle Eocene; Clarno Formation, Oregon) * ''

Nyssa sylvatica ''Nyssa sylvatica'', commonly known as tupelo, black tupelo, black gum or sour gum, is a medium-sized deciduous tree native to eastern North America from the coastal Northeastern United States and southern Ontario south to central Florida and e ...

'' Marshall – Black tupelo or black-gum (eastern + central United States; eastern + southern Mexico; Ontario) * ''

Nyssa talamancana Nyssa may refer to: People * Gregory of Nyssa (335–395), 4th-century Christian bishop, theologian, and saint * Nyssa (''Doctor Who''), a fictional character in ''Doctor Who'' * Nyssa Raatko, a Batman super villainess Places * Nyssa (Alexander) ...

'' Hammel & N.Zamora - (Panama, Costa Rica) * ''

Nyssa ursina Nyssa may refer to: People * Gregory of Nyssa (335–395), 4th-century Christian bishop, theologian, and saint * Nyssa (Doctor Who), Nyssa (''Doctor Who''), a fictional character in ''Doctor Who'' * Nyssa Raatko, a Batman super villainess Places ...

'' * ''

Nyssa yunnanensis ''Nyssa yunnanensis'' is a species of tree in the Tupelo (tree), Nyssa genus. It is a dioecious tree (meaning that it has distinct male and female individual organisms) reaching in height. This flowering canopy tree inhabits mountainous tropica ...

'' W.C.Yin – Yunnan tupelo (Yunnan)

Uses

Tupelo wood is used extensively by artistic

woodcarver Wood carving is a form of woodworking by means of a cutting tool (knife) in one hand or a chisel by two hands or with one hand on a chisel and one hand on a mallet, resulting in a wooden figure or figurine, or in the sculptural ornamentation ...

s, especially for carving ducks and other wildfowl. It power carves excellently and holds good detail in the end grain. In commerce, it is used for shipping containers and interior parts of furniture, and is used extensively in the

veneer Veneer may refer to: Materials * Veneer (dentistry), a cosmetic treatment for teeth * Masonry veneer, a thin facing layer of brick * Stone veneer, a thin facing layer of stone * Wood veneer, a thin facing layer of wood Arts and entertainment * ' ...

and panel industry for crossbanding,

plywood Plywood is a material manufactured from thin layers or "plies" of wood veneer that are glued together with adjacent layers having their wood grain rotated up to 90 degrees to one another. It is an engineered wood from the family of manufactured ...

cores, and backs. The wood can be readily

pulped Pulp is a Lignocellulosic biomass, lignocellulosic fibrous material prepared by chemically or mechanically separating cellulose fibers from wood, fiber crops, Paper recycling, waste paper, or cotton paper, rags. Mixed with water and other chemica ...

and is used for high-grade book and magazine papers. In the past, the hollow trunks were used as "

bee gum A beehive is an enclosed structure in which some honey bee species of the subgenus '' Apis'' live and raise their young. Though the word ''beehive'' is commonly used to describe the nest of any bee colony, scientific and professional literature ...

s" to hold beehives. Tupelos are popular

ornamental tree Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that i ...

s for their mature form, shade, and spectacular autumn leaf colors. Tupelos are used as food plants by the

larva A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. The ...

e of some

Lepidoptera Lepidoptera ( ) is an order (biology), order of insects that includes butterfly, butterflies and moths (both are called lepidopterans). About 180,000 species of the Lepidoptera are described, in 126 Family (biology), families and 46 Taxonomic r ...

species, including ''

Endoclita damor ''Endoclita damor'' is a species of moth of the family Hepialidae. It is known from India and the Himalayas. Food plants for this species include ''Albizia'', ''Altingia'', ''Cinchona'', ''Coffea'', ''Erythrina'', ''Eugenia'', ''Glochidion'', ''Ma ...

''. The Ogeechee Tupelo, sometimes referred to as the Ocheechee Lime, which is native to Georgia and north Florida produces an edible fruit in the form of a sour, oblong drupe.

Honey

Tupelos of the species ''

'' are valued as

honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of plants (primar ...

plants in the southeastern United States, particularly in the Gulf Coast region. They produce a very light, mild-tasting honey. In Florida,

beekeeper A beekeeper is a person who keeps honey bees. Beekeepers are also called honey farmers, apiarists, or less commonly, apiculturists (both from the Latin '' apis'', bee; cf. apiary). The term beekeeper refers to a person who keeps honey bees i ...

s keep beehives along the river swamps on platforms or floats during tupelo bloom to produce certified tupelo honey, which commands a high price on the market because of its flavor. Monofloral honey made from the nectar of ''Nyssa ogeche'' has such a high ratio of

fructose Fructose, or fruit sugar, is a Ketose, ketonic monosaccharide, simple sugar found in many plants, where it is often bonded to glucose to form the disaccharide sucrose. It is one of the three dietary monosaccharides, along with glucose and galacto ...

glucose Glucose is a simple sugar with the molecular formula . Glucose is overall the most abundant monosaccharide, a subcategory of carbohydrates. Glucose is mainly made by plants and most algae during photosynthesis from water and carbon dioxide, using ...

that it does not crystallize. The

Apalachicola River The Apalachicola River is a river, approximately 160 mi (180 km) long in the state of Florida. The river's large watershed, known as the ACF River Basin, drains an area of approximately into the Gulf of Mexico. The distance to its fa ...

in the

Florida Panhandle The Florida Panhandle (also West Florida and Northwest Florida) is the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Florida; it is a Salient (geography), salient roughly long and wide, lying between Alabama on the north and the west, Georgia (U. ...

is the center for tupelo honey. The honey is produced wherever tupelo trees (three species) bloom in southeastern USA, but the purest and most expensive version (which is certified by pollen analysis) is produced in this valley. In a good harvest year, the tupelo honey crop produced by a group of specialized Florida beekeepers has a value approaching $1,000,000.

Fossil record

Fruits conforming morphologically and anatomically to ''Nyssa'' have been identified from the Campanian of

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, Canada. The fruits conform to a kind that is common in the

Paleogene The Paleogene ( ; British English, also spelled Palaeogene or Palæogene; informally Lower Tertiary or Early Tertiary) is a geologic period, geologic period and system that spans 43 million years from the end of the Cretaceous Period million yea ...

, formerly called ''Palaeonyssa''.Assessing the Fossil Record of

Asterids In the APG IV system (2016) for the classification of flowering plants, the name asterids denotes a clade (a monophyletic group). Asterids is the largest group of flowering plants, with more than 80,000 species, about a third of the total floweri ...

in the Context of Our Current

Phylogenetic In biology, phylogenetics (; from Greek φυλή/ φῦλον [] "tribe, clan, race", and wikt:γενετικός, γενετικός [] "origin, source, birth") is the study of the evolutionary history and relationships among or within groups o ...

Framework by Steven R. Manchester, Friðgeir Grímsson, and Reinhard Zetter, Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden Aug 2015 : Vol. 100, Issue 4, pg(s) 329-363 doi: 10.3417/2014033

References

External links

USDA Plants Profile for ''Nyssa'' (tupelo)

including many photos, from

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...

{{Taxonbar, from=Q964952 Nyssa (genus) Swamps of Florida