Tupelo
Encyclopedia
The tupelo black gum, or pepperidge tree, genus Nyssa (ˈ), is a small genus
of about 9 to 11 species of tree
s with alternate, simple leaves. It is usually included in the subfamily Nyssoideae of the dogwood family, Cornaceae
, but is placed by some authorities in the family Nyssaceae
.
Most Nyssa species are highly tolerant of wet soil
s and flood
ing, and some need such environments as habitat. Five of the species are native to eastern North America
from southeastern Canada
through the Eastern United States
to southern Mexico
. Other species are found in eastern and southeastern Asia
from China
south through Indochina
to Malaysia and southwest to the Himalayas. A related genus, Davidia, including the dove tree (Davidia involucrata)
, is native to central China.
water nymph
.
The name tupelo, one of the common names used for Nyssa, is of Native American
origin, coming from the Creek
words ito ‘tree’ and opilwa ‘swamp’; it was in use by the mid-18th century
, especially for carving ducks and other wildfowl. In commerce, it is used for shipping containers and interior parts of furniture, and is used extensively in the veneer
and panel industry for crossbanding, plywood
cores, and backs. The wood can be readily pulped
and is used for high-grade book and magazine papers. In the past, the hollow trunks were used as "bee gums" to hold beehives
.
Tupelo trees are popular ornamental trees for their mature form, shade, and spectacular Autumn leaf color
s.
Tupelos are used as food plants by the larva
e of some Lepidoptera
species, including Endoclita damor
.
plants in the southeastern United States, particularly in the Gulf Coast
region. They produce a very light, mild-tasting honey. In northern Florida
, beekeepers
keep beehives along the river
swamp
s 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 N. ogeche has such a high ratio of fructose
to glucose
that it does not crystallize.
The Apalachicola River
in the Florida Panhandle
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 US$
1,000,000.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of about 9 to 11 species of tree
Tree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
s with alternate, simple leaves. It is usually included in the subfamily Nyssoideae of the dogwood family, Cornaceae
Cornaceae
Cornaceae is a cosmopolitan family of flowering plants in the order Cornales. It contains approximately 110 species, mostly trees and shrubs, which may be deciduous or evergreen. Members of this family usually have opposite or alternate simple leaves, four- or five-parted flowers clustered in...
, but is placed by some authorities in the family Nyssaceae
Nyssaceae
Nyssaceae is a small family of flowering trees closely related to and often included within the dogwood family . Nyssaceae commonly includes the following genera:...
.
Most Nyssa species are highly tolerant of wet soil
Soil
Soil is a natural body consisting of layers of mineral constituents of variable thicknesses, which differ from the parent materials in their morphological, physical, chemical, and mineralogical characteristics...
s and flood
Flood
A flood is an overflow of an expanse of water that submerges land. The EU Floods directive defines a flood as a temporary covering by water of land not normally covered by water...
ing, and some need such environments as habitat. Five of the species are native to eastern North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
from southeastern Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
through the Eastern United States
Eastern United States
The Eastern United States, the American East, or simply the East is traditionally defined as the states east of the Mississippi River. The first two tiers of states west of the Mississippi have traditionally been considered part of the West, but can be included in the East today; usually in...
to southern Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. Other species are found in eastern and southeastern Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
from China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
south through Indochina
Indochina
The Indochinese peninsula, is a region in Southeast Asia. It lies roughly southwest of China, and east of India. The name has its origins in the French, Indochine, as a combination of the names of "China" and "India", and was adopted when French colonizers in Vietnam began expanding their territory...
to Malaysia and southwest to the Himalayas. A related genus, Davidia, including the dove tree (Davidia involucrata)
Dove tree
The Dove Tree is a medium-sized deciduous tree, usually placed in the tupelo family , but is sometimes included in the dogwood family , and by yet others given family status of its own, as Davidiaceae. It is also known as the Handkerchief tree or Pocket-handkerchief tree...
, is native to central China.
Names
The genus name Nyssa refers to a GreekAncient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
water nymph
Naiad
In Greek mythology, the Naiads or Naiades were a type of nymph who presided over fountains, wells, springs, streams, and brooks....
.
The name tupelo, one of the common names used for Nyssa, is of Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
origin, coming from the Creek
Creek language
The Creek language, also known as Muskogee or Muscogee , is a Muskogean language spoken by Muscogee and Seminole people primarily in the U.S. states of Oklahoma and Florida....
words ito ‘tree’ and opilwa ‘swamp’; it was in use by the mid-18th century
Species
Nine species of Nyssa are commonly recognized:- Nyssa aquatica L. – Water Tupelo (North America)
- Nyssa biflora Walter – Swamp Tupelo (North America)
- Nyssa leptophylla – Hunan Tupelo (Asia)
- Nyssa ogeche W.Bartram ex Marshall – Ogeechee Tupelo (North America)
- Nyssa sessiliflora Hook.f. & Thomson ex Benth. (=N. javanica) – Indonesian Tupelo (Indonesia)
- Nyssa sinensis Oliv. – Chinese Tupelo (Asia)
- Nyssa sylvatica Marshall – Black Tupelo (North America)
- Nyssa ursina Small – Bear Tupelo (North America)
- Nyssa yunnanensisNyssa yunnanensisNyssa yunnanensis is a species of plant in the Cornaceae family. It is endemic to China. It is threatened by habitat loss.-References:* Sun, W. 1998. . Downloaded on 22 August 2007....
W.C.Yin – Yunnan Tupelo (Asia)
Uses
Tupelo wood is used extensively by artistic woodcarversWood carving
Wood carving is a form of working wood by means of a cutting tool 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 of a wooden object...
, especially for carving ducks and other wildfowl. In commerce, it is used for shipping containers and interior parts of furniture, and is used extensively in the veneer
Wood veneer
In woodworking, veneer refers to thin slices of wood, usually thinner than 3 mm , that are typically glued onto core panels to produce flat panels such as doors, tops and panels for cabinets, parquet floors and parts of furniture. They are also used in marquetry...
and panel industry for crossbanding, plywood
Plywood
Plywood is a type of manufactured timber made from thin sheets of wood veneer. It is one of the most widely used wood products. It is flexible, inexpensive, workable, re-usable, and can usually be locally manufactured...
cores, and backs. The wood can be readily pulped
Wood pulp
Pulp is a lignocellulosic fibrous material prepared by chemically or mechanically separating cellulose fibres from wood, fibre crops or waste paper. Wood pulp is the most common raw material in papermaking.-History:...
and is used for high-grade book and magazine papers. In the past, the hollow trunks were used as "bee gums" to hold beehives
Beehive (beekeeping)
A beehive is an enclosed structure in which some honey bee species of the subgenus Apis live and raise their young. Natural beehives are naturally occurring structures occupied by honeybee colonies, while domesticated honeybees live in man-made beehives, often in an apiary. These man-made...
.
Tupelo trees are popular ornamental trees for their mature form, shade, and spectacular Autumn leaf color
Autumn leaf color
Autumn leaf color is a phenomenon that affects the normally green leaves of many deciduous trees and shrubs by which they take on, during a few weeks in the autumn season, one or many colors that range from red to yellow...
s.
Tupelos are used as food plants by the larva
Larva
A larva 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...
e of some Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera
Lepidoptera is a large order of insects that includes moths and butterflies . It is one of the most widespread and widely recognizable insect orders in the world, encompassing moths and the three superfamilies of butterflies, skipper butterflies, and moth-butterflies...
species, including Endoclita damor
Endoclita
Endoclita is a genus of moths of the family Hepialidae. There are 60 described species found in eastern and southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent.- Species :*E. aboe - India*E. absurdus - China*E. actinidae - China...
.
Honey
Tupelos are valued as honeyHoney
Honey is a sweet food made by bees using nectar from flowers. The variety produced by honey bees is the one most commonly referred to and is the type of honey collected by beekeepers and consumed by humans...
plants in the southeastern United States, particularly in the Gulf Coast
Gulf Coast of the United States
The Gulf Coast of the United States, sometimes referred to as the Gulf South, South Coast, or 3rd Coast, comprises the coasts of American states that are on the Gulf of Mexico, which includes Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida and are known as the Gulf States...
region. They produce a very light, mild-tasting honey. In northern Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, beekeepers
Beekeeping
Beekeeping is the maintenance of honey bee colonies, commonly in hives, by humans. A beekeeper keeps bees in order to collect honey and other products of the hive , to pollinate crops, or to produce bees for sale to other beekeepers...
keep beehives along the river
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
swamp
Swamp
A swamp is a wetland with some flooding of large areas of land by shallow bodies of water. A swamp generally has a large number of hammocks, or dry-land protrusions, covered by aquatic vegetation, or vegetation that tolerates periodical inundation. The two main types of swamp are "true" or swamp...
s 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
Monofloral honey
Monofloral honey is a type of honey which has a high value in the marketplace because it has a distinctive flavor or other attribute due to its being predominantly from the nectar of one plant species....
made from the nectar
Nectar source
A nectar source is a flowering plant that produces nectar as part of its reproductive strategy. These plants create nectar, which attract pollinating insects and sometimes other animals such as birds....
of N. ogeche has such a high ratio of fructose
Fructose
Fructose, or fruit sugar, is a simple monosaccharide found in many plants. It is one of the three dietary monosaccharides, along with glucose and galactose, that are absorbed directly into the bloodstream during digestion. Fructose was discovered by French chemist Augustin-Pierre Dubrunfaut in 1847...
to glucose
Glucose
Glucose is a simple sugar and an important carbohydrate in biology. Cells use it as the primary source of energy and a metabolic intermediate...
that it does not crystallize.
The Apalachicola River
Apalachicola River
The Apalachicola River is a river, approximately 112 mi long in the State of Florida. This river's large watershed, known as the ACF River Basin for short, drains an area of approximately into the Gulf of Mexico. The distance to its farthest headstream in northeast Georgia is approximately 500...
in the Florida Panhandle
Florida Panhandle
The Florida Panhandle, an informal, unofficial term for the northwestern part of Florida, is a strip of land roughly 200 miles long and 50 to 100 miles wide , lying between Alabama on the north and the west, Georgia also on the north, and the Gulf of Mexico to the south. Its eastern boundary is...
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
Melissopalynology
Melissopalynology is the study of pollen contained in honey and, in particular, the pollen's source. By studying the pollen in a sample of honey, it is possible to gain evidence of the geographical location and genus of the plants that the honey bees visited, although honey may also contain...
) 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 US$
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
1,000,000.
Popular culture and related geography
- The city of Tupelo, MississippiTupelo, MississippiTupelo is the largest city in and the county seat of Lee County, Mississippi, United States. It is the seventh largest city in the state of Mississippi, smaller than Meridian, and larger than Greenville. As of the 2000 United States Census, the city's population was 34,211...
is named for the tree. It is the birthplace of Elvis PresleyElvis PresleyElvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
. - Nick Cave and the Bad SeedsNick Cave and the Bad SeedsNick Cave and the Bad Seeds are an Australian alternative rock band, formed in Melbourne in 1983. The band is fronted by Nick Cave and has featured international personnel throughout their career.-Formation and early releases :...
wrote a song called "Tupelo", describing the birth of Elvis Presley. - "Tupelo HoneyTupelo Honey (Van Morrison song)"Tupelo Honey" is a popular song written by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison and the title song from his 1971 album, Tupelo Honey. The title derives from an expensive, mild-tasting tupelo honey produced in the southeastern United States. Released as a single in 1972, it reached number...
" is the title song of a 1971 albumTupelo HoneyTupelo Honey is the fifth solo album by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison. It was released in October 1971 by Warner Bros. Records. Morrison had written all of the songs on the album in Woodstock, New York before his move to Marin County, California, except for "You're My Woman", which...
by Van MorrisonVan MorrisonVan Morrison, OBE is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and musician. His live performances at their best are regarded as transcendental and inspired; while some of his recordings, such as the studio albums Astral Weeks and Moondance, and the live album It's Too Late to Stop Now, are widely...
. - In the 1997 movie Ulee's GoldUlee's GoldUlee's Gold is a 1997 film written and directed by Victor Nuñez, and starring Peter Fonda in the title role. Co-stars include Patricia Richardson, Christine Dunford, Tom Wood, Jessica Biel, J. Kenneth Campbell, Steven Flynn, Dewey Weber, and Vanessa Zima...
, Ulee is a beekeeper whose "gold" is tupelo honey. - In Kurt VonnegutKurt VonnegutKurt Vonnegut, Jr. was a 20th century American writer. His works such as Cat's Cradle , Slaughterhouse-Five and Breakfast of Champions blend satire, gallows humor and science fiction. He was known for his humanist beliefs and was honorary president of the American Humanist Association.-Early...
's novel TimequakeTimequakeTimequake is a semi-autobiographical work by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. published in 1997. Vonnegut described the novel as a "stew", in which he alternates between summarizing a novel he had been struggling with for a number of years, and waxing nostalgic about various events in his life.-Plot...
, Kilgore TroutKilgore TroutKilgore Trout is a fictional character created by author Kurt Vonnegut. He was originally created as a fictionalized version of author Theodore Sturgeon , although Trout's consistent presence in Vonnegut's works has also led critics to view him as the author's own alter ego...
's last poem has the lines: "When the tupelo/ Goes poop-a-lo / I'll come back to youp-a-lo". - The Wellesley College "Tupelos" are an all-female a cappellaA cappellaA cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
group named after Tupelo Point, a site on the Wellesley College campus. - Uncle TupeloUncle TupeloUncle Tupelo was an alternative country music group from Belleville, Illinois, active between 1987 and 1994. Jay Farrar, Jeff Tweedy, and Mike Heidorn formed the band after the lead singer of their previous band, The Primitives, left to attend college. The trio recorded three albums for Rockville...
was an alternative countryAlternative countryAlternative country is a loosely defined sub-genre of country music, which includes acts that differ significantly in style from mainstream or pop country music...
band whose name combined two words chosen at random from a dictionary. - The USCGC Tupelo (WLB-303)USCGC Tupelo (WLB-303)USCGC Tupelo WAGL/WLB-303, was a Cactus Class 180 foot buoy tender built by Zenith Dredge Company of Duluth, Minnesota. Her keel was laid 15 August 1942, launched 28 November 1942 and commissioned on 30 August 1943...
was a Cactus (A) class, 180 foot USCG Seagoing Buoy TenderUSCG Seagoing Buoy TenderThe Seagoing Buoy Tender is a type of U.S. Coast Guard cutter originally designed to service aids to navigation, throughout the waters of the United States, and wherever U.S. shipping interests require. The Coast Guard has maintained a fleet of seagoing buoy tenders dating back to its origins in...
. - Tupelo is mentioned in the lyrics of the 1967 Bobbie Gentry song "Ode to Billie Joe": "Brother married Becky Thompson, They bought a store in Tupelo".
External links
- USDA Plants Profile for Nyssa (tupelo)
- Nyssa in the Flora of China
- Page on Nyssa aquatica in America, including many photos, from Louisiana State UniversityLouisiana State UniversityLouisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name...
- Nyssa aquatica images at bioimages.vanderbilt.edu
- All About Tupelo Wood
- Varietals of Honey