Photo Credit: Rick Snider

Home » Species at Risk » Butternut

Butternut

B. Boysen

Juglans cinerea

Species at Risk Status

Federal Government status: Endangered

Provincial Government status: Endangered

Have you seen this species at risk? Report your sighting.

Description

Medium sized tree, it is a member of the walnut family.
Distinctive ridged and furrowed ash grey coloured bark.
Produces small purplish flowers in the spring.
Produces drooping clusters of nuts that have sticky, yellow-green husks.
Compound leaves, with 11-17 leaflets. Leaflets are serrated and oblong in shape.
Branching alternate.
Roots produce a chemical that will kill some nearby plants.

Habitat

Likely never common in Ontario, it prefers rich moist soil in fields and forest edges.

Threats

Butternut canker is an incurable fungal disease that kills the trees within a few years. This fungus was introduced from overseas. It is estimated that 1/3 of Butternut trees in eastern Ontario have died.

Conservation Actions

In Ontario, the Forest Gene Conservation Association has established a Butternut Conservation Group. They will seek out disease resistant trees to be used to propagate seedlings.
If you think you have butternut trees on your property, please contact the Parry Sound Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks at 705-746-4201.

Range Map