Sweet Gum

Back in the day, American Indians were the first to chew on the corky bark of the Sweet gum tree which excretes a sticky resin known as ‘liquid amber’.

This pleasant-smelling resin later became a raw material used for the making of chewing gum and the tree is still planted and used for this purpose today

Foliage is deciduous, maple-like shiny dark-green when they first appear in May. When crushed give off a strong amber scent.

In the autumn, the leaf colours become simply outstanding, sweet gum is one of the best autumn leaf colour trees on the planet. Depending on the weather temperature changes at the end of summer and into early autumn, the leaves of sweet gum can show intense changing shades that range from deep purple, yellow to orange to red scarlet and wine-red before they fall.

Sweet gum tree bark is dark grey, corky and deeply grooved on a straight, upright trunk. Crown shape is pyramidal when young, but later broad and ovoid. They make great avenue trees.

Inconspicuous yellowish-green flowers appear in April/May and appealing decorative, spiky balls hanging on long stems, like those of the London plane tree, persist well into the winter months.

Although there are many varieties, most sweet gum are medium sized trees reaching around 15 metres tall with a 4-8 metre spread. The small variety ‘Gum Ball’ is ideal for small gardens or for planting into small spaces in other gardens.

We provide full planting services for Sweet Gum Trees which includes supply, delivery and installation. Contact us today for a quotation.