Swamp Tupelo

Nyssa aquatica - Swamp gum, tupelo gum, swamp tupelo
Nyssa ogeche - Ogeechee tupelo, white tupelo
Nyssa biflora - Swamp tupelo

The genus Nyssa contains ten species of trees. Five species are native to North America; of those, Nyssa aquatica and Nyssa ogeche have unusual commercial value. These deciduous trees grow in swamps, where they often colonize an entire area.

The tupelo is named from the combination of two Creek words, ‘eto’ for ‘tree’ and ‘opelwu’ for ‘swamp’. It is one of the few trees that can cope with prolonged flood conditions. Tree roots need oxygen to survive during the tree’s growing season, and as water contains less oxygen than the air pockets in soil, tree roots can only survive underwater if the roots adapt. Only the bald cypress is as well-adapted to swamp conditions as the tupelo.

Like the bald cypress, tupelo tree living in constantly wet conditions have swollen trunks. This wide base gives the tree increased stability, and it is rare to see a tupelo knocked down by high winds.

A swamp tupelo can grow from 50 to 100 feet tall. The crown is usually narrow, and often has a pyramidal shape with a 25 to 50 foot spread.

The bark of tupelos is roughly furrowed, so that it is often the host for mosses and lichens.

Tupelo wood is used today for furniture, millwork, veneer, plywood, bridge ties, crossties, crossing planks, and shipping containers. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many carpenters considered tupelo to be excellent timber for framing houses. Because the wood is strong even when thinly cut, it has traditionally been used for berry crates. Tupelo wood shows a characteristic pattern when quartersawn.

The wood of the swollen trunk is lighter and less dense than the rest of the tree. It is often used to make fishing floats and bobbers.

Nyssa ogeche grow in dense stands along the Apalachicola, Choctahatchee and Ochlockonee rivers and their tributaries in northwest Florida. This is the only place in the world where pure tupelo honey is commercially harvested. Tupelo honey is associated with the Florida panhandle in much the same way as a Riesling wine is associated with the Rhine river valley.

To gather the nectar, beehives are placed on bluffs, elevated platforms along the river’s edge, or even on floats during the short period in April and May when the white tupelo blooms. The hives are stripped of earlier honey before the white tupelo comes into bloom, and the prized tupelo honey is harvested as soon as the trees stop blooming. Beekeepers have been harvesting this honey for over 100 years.

White tupelo honey is a light golden amber color with a slightly greenish cast. The flavor is distinctive, with a complex floral, fruity taste and aftertaste. It is a choice table honey; many connoisseurs consider it the sweetest honey in the world.

Honey from Ogeechee Tupelo nectar will not granulate or crystallize due to its high levulose content. Some physicians allow diabetic patients to eat white tupelo honey due to its high levulose-low dextrose ratio.

Other swamp tupelos are also valued for honey production, and honey from their nectar is sometimes sold as tupelo honey.

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