Georgia Wildlife Federation

This mighty inhabitant of the southern river swamp forests is recognized by its buttressed base and long, clear trunk which opens into a narrow crown. It often occurs in pure stands and is associated with bald cypress, longleaf and slash pines, red maple, overcup oak and cottonwood. It is considered a subclimax swamp species that grows in alluvial or riverbed soils which are seasonally flooded rather than constantly underwater. Fire is detrimental to the tupelo gum.

The tupelo occurs in the southeastern U.S., from Virginia south to north Florida, west to southeastern Texas, and following the Mississippi River valley to S. Illinois. In Georgia, it is found throughout the Coastal Plain and also in the Piedmont along the Flint River in Upson, Pike and Meriwether counties. The northern-most extension in the Piedmont is along the Alcovy River in Newton County and is now under protection by the Georgia Wildlife Federation. Its preferred habitat is alluvial soils, swamps and floodplains of the coastal plain.

The wood of the tupelo is commercially important. It is a softwood, primarily used for paneling, pallets, fruit crates and pulp. Carvers have used the wood from the light, spongy roots to create duck decoys. It is also used to carve dough or bread bowls, and fishermen use it to make floats for their nets.

Typically, tupelo reaches 80 to90 feet and about 6 to 7 feet around. One tree in Louisiana named the National Champion Tupelo Gum by the American Forestry Association in 1972 was 105 feet high, with a spread of 58 feet and a circumference of 27 feet 1 inch. It has large, shiny leaves 5-12 inches long and blooms from March to April, with male flowers in spherical clusters, while female flowers are solitary. Both flowers are greenish-white. The fruit is a dark purple to indigo drupe (like a cherry) which ripens September to October.

Some references indicate tupelo will begin to flower and produce fruit at 5 to 10 years of age. Still others say seed production may not begin until the tree is as much as 30 years old. Once a tree does begin to bear, an abundant crop of thin, sour- pulped fruits will be produced every year. Germination is usually good unless the fruits are submersed. Thus, the fruit must find its way to a sandbar which will not be inundated by spring floods in order to germinate. Many of the fruits which ripen in mid-September and fall by October will be quickly devoured by woodducks, turkeys, deer, bear, fox, raccoons, squirrels, robins, mockingbirds, thrushes, and thrashers.

Along to Tombigbee and Apalachicola rivers, vast expanses of tupelo gum swamps are important to the honey industry. Hives have to be positioned well above the rivers to prevent flooding. The trees begin to flower in March or April, before the new leaves emerge. Honey bees, which often build their hives in the cavity of a tupelo, work the flowers from daylight to dark during the short bloom period. Tupelo honey is described as having a heavy body and mild flavor. It is very low in dextrose and high in levulose, a form of fruit-sugar, which prevents granulation. This makes it desirable to bottlers, and the honey commands a good price at the market. Also, because of the high levulose level, it is a good source of sugar for diabetics. The levels must be converted twice into other sugars and is therefore absorbed slowly into the bloodstream.

The presence of the tupelo gum in the Alcovy River is significant. It was described by noted taxonomist Al Radford in 1975 as the purest stand of water tupelo he had recently seen in the Southeast. It is even more significant that the species is disjunct from other populations by 60 or more miles and is in the Piedmont instead of the Coastal Plain. Why it occurs in the Alcovy River basin is a mystery. Perhaps it is a remnant of a prehistoric habitat, when the coastline was more westerly, and today's Piedmont was the Coastal Plain.

The botanical family of the tupelo belongs in is Nyssaceae, with its species name being Nyssa aquatica. The Greek word Nyssa means "Water nymph" or "goddess of Lakes and rivers." The Creek Indians called it Tupelo or, simply, "Swamp tree." A tupelo gum swamp is a magical, mysterious place. It is vast and open and cool, with a quality of light difficult to capture with a camera. It is rejuvenating and stimulating and cleansing and soothing. A tupelo gum swamp an hour's drive from the fast pace of Atlanta, in the Piedmont of Georgia, is deserving of our attention and our care.