GREAT AMERICANS: SWEET GUM
The Monday Garden, October 31, 2004, Issue 136
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Big, tall trees, towering giants: in the Northeast those words bring quickly to mind oaks, horse chestnuts, tulips and sweet gums. The American sweet gum (Liquidambar styraciflua), a member of the witch hazel family, is every inch a treasure: a tall, handsome, fast-growing hardwood tree to shade a moist, sunny place, prized for its commercially useful hardwood and gum, and beloved by many critters including the (at least to me) elusive yellowed-bellied sap sucker.
Picture: The American sweet gum (Liquidambar styraciflua) can’t be beat for fall color. First Presbyterian Church Stamford, CT October 2004
Our sweet gum has many common names. Some of the nicest ones are redgum, alligator-wood, starleaf-gum, and satin walnut (the wood, when dyed, resembles black walnut). The Latin “Liquidambar" means “liquid amber” referring to the tree’s fragrant sap. The gum has been used since Pre-Columbian times for flavoring and medicine.
Unlike the maples with their numerous cousins and cross-breeds, which make identification as challenging as a Sunday NY Times crossword puzzle, there are only two or three varieties of sweet gums in the world – the American giant and an Asian cousin or two. It’s easy to recognize our sweet gum in all seasons.