Liquidambar styraciflua

Sweetgum

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Family: Altingiaceae

Mid-Atlantic bloom time: April - May

Mid-Atlantic fruit ripe: August - September

The spiky fallen fruits ("gum balls") of Sweetgum are usually the first thing one encounters with this tree. They are hard and uncomfortable when stepped on with bare feet, and remain long into the next year. Sweetgum's leaves are characteristic with 5 palmate lobes (rarely 3 or 7 lobes), looking somewhat like 5-pointed stars, with slight serrations. In autumn, the leaves turn brilliant yellow and red unless killed off by an early frost while still green. Branches are often corky, having a winged look to them.

Flowers of Sweetgum are unisexual, with the male (staminate) flowers in separate terminal elongated clusters (racemes), and the round female (pistillate) clusters also on the end of the branches, hanging down.

12 April 2015 Merrimac Farm Wildlife Management Area, Aden, VA (trunk of medium-age tree, approx. 40 cm diameter)	15 August 2014 Huntley Meadows Park, Alexandria, VA (trunk of mature tree, approx. 80 cm diameter)	12 April 2015 Merrimac Farm Wildlife Management Area, Aden, VA (small branch showing winged character)	15 August 2014 Huntley Meadows Park, Alexandria, VA (fallen seed pod and autumn leaf)
27 March 2016 Merrimac Farm Wildlife Management Area, Aden, VA (branch with staminate (male) flowers)	4 May 2015 Huntley Meadows Park, Alexandria, VA (branch with staminate (male) flowers)	4 May 2015 Huntley Meadows Park, Alexandria, VA (fallen staminate (male) flower raceme)	4 May 2015 Huntley Meadows Park, Alexandria, VA (branch with pistillate (female) flowers hanging down)

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