American Sweetgum

Description:

The sweetgum is a medium to large growing tree with averaging height between 50-70 ft / 15-21 m. The trunks of these trees are covered with deeply ridged bark. The leaves of the sweetgum are long and broad, ending with five pointed lobes in a semi star shape. Before blooming the sweetgum forms dark brown waxy buds. When blooming (usually begins in early spring and lasts throughout the summer into early autumn) the sweetgum forms a flower in the shape of a cone made of multiple small green balls. One of the most distinctive features of the sweetgum are their fruited bodies, which are round, covered with narrow spikes, and hang from long stems. As the fruited bodies become mature they harden and turn from a bright green color to a brown color. Eventually the mature pods form small, hollow cavities through which their seeds are released.

Habitat:

The Liquidambar styraciflua, more commonly known as the American sweetgum tree, is a deciduous tree native to the warm temperate areas of North America and the tropical mountainous regions of Mexico and Central America.

Notes:

The fallen fruit of sweetgum trees go by a lot of names, such as; gum balls, monkey balls, goblin bombs, burr balls, or sticker balls. In the carpentry industry, the wood of the sweetgum is refereed to as satin walnut. The wood, which is a type of hardwood, is often used for things such as furniture, cigar boxes, crates, flooring, barrels, and as a veneer for plywood. The gum resin of the sweetgum (also known as liquid amber or copalm balsam) oozes from the bark of the tree if it's wounded. The resin may be clear, red tinged, or yellow and is known to have a pleasant smell often compared to ambergris. The resin can be chewed like chewing gum and has long been used for this purpose in the southern portion of the United States. The sweetgum tree is popular as an ornamental tree.