Start growing
Fast-growing; tolerates poor drainage. Needs full sun.
GROW SOMETHING WONDERFUL
Sweet Gum
Liquidambar styraciflua
Your guide to planting, growing, and getting to know this plant.
THE PLANT NOTEBOOK
Sweet Gum care, from seed onward.
- Botanical name
- Liquidambar styraciflua
- Common names
- Redgum, Star-leaved Gum
- Family
- Altingiaceae
- Genus
- Liquidambar
- Species
- L. styraciflua
Growing with your kit
Shake the 'gumball' cones included in your Seeds In A Cup® kit to see the tiny, winged seeds emerge!
Propagation
By seed.
Seasonal growth & harvest
Brilliant and multi-colored fall foliage (purple, red, orange simultaneously).
Growing conditions
Moist bottomlands and rich upland soils.
Weather & tolerances
Moderate flood tolerance; sensitive to salt.
Pests & plant health
Ambrosia beetles and leaf spot.
Plant safety
Safe; resin has been used as chewing gum.
Botanical features
A large deciduous tree with star-shaped leaves and 'gumball' (spiky seed pod) fruit. Twigs often have corky ridges.
Varieties
‘Rotundiloba’ (Round lobes, seedless).
Garden & everyday uses
wood used for veneers and cabinets
Native range & distribution
Southeastern US, north to New York and west to Texas.
Conservation
Secure.
Name origins
Latin ‘liquidus’ (liquid) and Arabic ‘ambar’ (amber), referring to the resin.
History
Montezuma and Hernán Cortés shared a drink flavored with Sweetgum resin in 1519.