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Altingiaceae
Sweetgum
Liquidambar styraciflua
Transformation and the beauty of change.
- Family
- Altingiaceae
- Genus
- Liquidambar
- Native to
- eastern North America, Mexico, Central America
- Bloom season
- Spring
- Type
- deciduous tree
- Height
- 2000–3500 cm
- Sunlight
- full sun
- Soil
- moist, slightly acidic, deep loam
- Water
- medium to high
- Hardiness
- 5–9
- Lifespan
- perennial tree; 150–400 years
Did you know
- Sweetgum produces the most spectacular five-color autumn foliage of any native American tree — red, orange, yellow, purple, and green simultaneously.
- The spiky seed balls that litter sidewalks are called 'gumballs' and are famously painful to step on barefoot.
- The genus name 'Liquidambar' means 'liquid amber', referring to the fragrant resin the bark exudes.
- That resin, called storax, has been used in perfumery and medicine since the Aztec and Maya civilizations.
- The star-shaped leaves have five to seven pointed lobes, making them instantly recognizable.
Color meanings
Green
growth and renewal