Medicinal Monday...Distinctive and Beautiful - the Tupelo Tree

This slow-growing deciduous tree known as Tupelo is native to the Northeastern United States. Tupelo is a Native American food and is used medicinally. The name tupelo is of Native American origin, coming from the Creek words toi (tree) and opilwa (swamp).

About Nyssa sylvatic

This tree has a distinctive pyramidal form. It emerges with dark green leaves in the spring with the glossy pointy leaves turning crimson, yellow and orange in the fall. Its furrowed black bark adds an interesting contrast to the leaves. As the bark ages, it resembles alligator hide on very old stems. The tree blooms from May to June. The flowers are greenish-white on long stalks and are an excellent nectar source for bees. The flowers give way to an oval-shaped blueish black fruit that resembles a blueberry. It is primarily a lowland tree that is found in wet woods as well as on dry rocky wooded slopes. The Tupelo tree can grow up to 115 feet but averages between 66 and 85 feet tall.

Culinary and Medicinal Uses

The fruit is the only edible part of this tree and it is said to be very tasty. It is somewhat sour but sweet enough to enjoy raw. Although the fruit appears to be very large, they are not as fleshy as they look because of the large seed inside the fruit. The fruit is eaten raw by Native Americans and used to flavor stews and drinks. The Chippewa used the wood of this tree to make awl handles, mauls, and war clubs because the wood was strong and didn't split. The wood is also used to make shuttles for weaving.

A mixture of the tree compound was made into a decoction and used as an antidiarrheal. The inner bark was used to induce vomiting and ooze from the roots was used as an eye medicine. A twig was used to clean teeth. The Cherokee in particular found the Tupelo tree a great resource for making medicines. Children with parasitic worms were given a soothing bath with water infused with the bark of this tree. The Creek used a decoction of the bark as a bath to treat tuberculosis. The Koasati made a decoction of the bark and applied the mixture to gunshot wounds.

Did You Know...

Nyssa sylvatica is also called sour gum.

In the Northeast, it is called pepperidge. 

On Martha's Vineyard, it is called beetlebung because the wood was used to make mallets that were used to hammer bungs or stoppers into barrels.

The fruit is attractive to birds and wildlife. 

The Genus name comes from Nysa or Nyssa, one of the water nymphs in Greek mythology.

The limbs of these trees deteriorate early and the decayed holes make good dens for squirrels, opossums, raccoons, and honeybees.