North Carolina Botanical Garden

Plant Index

Scientific Name:
Common Name:
Genus:
Family:

Liquidambar styraciflua

Liquidambar styraciflua L.

sweet gum, red gum, sweetgum

Cultivar(s): Oconee, Rotundiloba, Silver King, Slender Silhouette

Image ID: 15384
Image by: Sorrie, Bruce A.
Image Collection: NCBG Digital Library

PLANT INDEX

ID_PLANT: LIST2
SCIENTIFIC NAME: Liquidambar styraciflua
Include in WOTAS: 0
Publish to Web: 1
Last Modified: 2019-11-30

CULTIVAR INDEX

Cult_id	Cultivar_name	Action
628	Oconee	View
219	Rotundiloba	View
629	Silver King	View
630	Slender Silhouette	View

GENUS INDEX

GENUS CODE: LIQUI
GENUS SCIENTIFIC: Liquidambar
GENUS AUTHORITY: L.
GENUS COMMON: Sweetgum
GENUS SUMMARY: A genus of about 15 species, trees, north temperate, of e. North America, Central America (Mexico to Nicaragua), e. Asia (s. China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Cambodia), and e. Mediterranean (Turkey, Rhodos, Cyprus). The circumscription of Liquidambar here follows Ickert-Bond & Wen (2013) in including Altingia and Semiliquidambar.
GENUS IDENTIFICATION:
GENUS REFERENCES: Endress in Kubitzki, Rohwer, & Bittrich (1993); Li & Donoghue (1999).

FAMILY INDEX

FAMILY CODE: ALTING
FAMILY SCIENTIFIC: Altingiaceae
FAMILY AUTHORITY: Lindley 1846
FAMILY COMMON: Sweet-gum Family
FAMILY SUMMARY: A monogeneric family of 1 genus and about 15 species, trees, of e. Asia, Indomalaysia, e. North America, Central America, and e. Mediterranean.
FAMILY REFERENCE: Ickert-Bond & Wen (2013); Endress in Kubitzki, Rohwer, & Bittrich (1993); Hoot, Magallï¿½n, and Crane (1999).

NCBG DESCRIPTIVES

INTRO:
STEMS: Pith continuous. Young twigs (1-year-old or less) brown or gray or green or orange or reddish-brown, glabrate or pubescent. Twigs (2â€“4 years old) glabrous, winged or without special surface features. Leaf scars crescent-shaped or half-round or triangular, bundle scars 3 per leaf scar, stipule scars inconspicuous, stipule scars not circumferential. Bark of mature trunks furrowed or ridged. Buds axillary or collateral or terminal, brown or orange or reddish-brown, 6â€“12 mm long, conic or ovoid, sharp, glabrous or pubescent, ciliate, bud scales imbricate.
LEAVES: Leaves deciduous, simple, petiolate, alternate, 7.5â€“19(â€“25) cm long, 4.4â€“18 cm wide, orbiculate or reniform, leaf margins serrate or serrulate, deeply lobed, palmately lobed, leaf lobes (3â€“)5â€“7 per leaf, leaf apices acuminate or acute or rounded, leaf bases cordate or truncate. Leaf upper surface green, glabrous or glabrate. Leaf lower surface green, glabrate or with tufts in vein axils. Leaf venation palmate. Petioles (4.4â€“)6â€“10(â€“16) cm long, glabrous or glabrate. Stipules present, 3â€“13 mm long, caducous, blade-like, not circumferential.
INFLORESCENCE: Inflorescences terminal, heads or racemes, flowers sessile or stalked.
FLOWERS: Flowers unisexual or pistillate or staminate, perigynous. Perianth. Calyx radially symmetric, synsepalous. Sepals 4 per flower. Corolla absent. Androecium. Stamens 4â€“8(â€“10) per flower, separate, filaments 1 mm long, staminodes present. Gynoecium. Ovaries half-inferior, pistils 1 per flower. Gynoecium syncarpous, 2 carpels per flower, styles 2 per pistil, styles 4â€“8 mm long, stigmas 4â€“8 mm long, placentation axile. Other floral features. Hypanthia present.
FRUITS: Fruits aggregate fruits or capsules, 2.5â€“4 cm long, brown, fruit maturation 1 years.
COMMENTS: Leaves star-shaped; fruit a globose head of beaked capsules that often persists on the tree through the winter.
HEIGHT: (10â€“)15â€“35(â€“45) m tall.

DURATION: Perennial
HABIT: Tree

LEAF ARRANGEMENT: Alternate
LEAF COMPLEXITY: Simple
LEAF RETENTION: Deciduous

FLORAL CHARACTERISTICS
SYMMETRY: Radial (Actinomorphic)
BLOOM TIME: February or March or April or May.

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
	x	x	x	x	x

BLOOM COLOR:

White	Red	Pink	Orange	Yellow	Green	Blue	Lavender	Purple	Violet	Brown	Not Applicable
x					x

FRUITING PERIOD: Aug-Sep.

DISTRIBUTION
HABITAT TYPE: Bottomlands, Dry forests, Moist forests
NATIVE RANGE: eastern United States & Guatemala

HORTICULTURAL
Plant Sale Text:

Bloom Table Text:

NCBG Location:

Cultural Notes:

SOIL MOISTURE: Dry, Average, Moist/Wet
LIGHT EXPOSURE: Sun, Part Shade, Shade
MINIMUM HARDINESS ZONE:
MAXIMUM HARDINESS ZONE:
GERMINATION CODE:
WILDLIFE VALUE:
DEER RESISTANCE:

GRIM COLLECTIONS

Coll_id	Project	Collection date	Collector	Action
515	SOS	2015-10-03	Dakar	View
522	SOS	2015-10-06	Heraty	View
632	SOS	2015-11-11	Faucette	View

GRIM ACCESSIONS

acc_id	acc_num	acc_dt	coll_id	Action
919	1985-0604			View
920	1985-0605			View
1331	1986-1106			View
1967	1986-1758			View
2763	1987-0257			View
3766	1991-0461			View
4504	1992-0660			View
4728	1992-0907			View
5029	1995-0148			View
5149	1995-0268			View
5661	1995-0785			View
6171	1995-1303			View
7785	2001-0141	2001-07-05		View
8376	2005-0152	2005-04-12		View
8377	2005-0153	2005-04-12		View
8378	2005-0154	2005-04-12		View
8387	2005-0163	2005-04-12		View
8570	2006-0149	2006-08-11		View
8584	2006-0163	2006-08-11		View
8596	2006-0175	2006-08-11		View
8601	2006-0180	2006-08-11		View
8602	2006-0181	2006-08-11		View
8768	2007-0037	2007-03-14		View
8783	2007-0053	2007-03-14		View
8787	2007-0057	2007-03-14		View
8791	2007-0061	2007-03-14		View
8807	2007-0077	2007-03-13		View

GRIM PLANTINGS

plt_num	acc_id	loc_num	pers_num	inst_dt	Action
1689	919	157	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
1690	919	130	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
1691	919	133	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
1692	919	155	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
1693	919	158	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
1694	919	159	Liloia	0000-00-00	View
1695	919	164	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
1696	919	169	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
1697	919	170	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
1698	920	172	NCBG staff	1942-01-01	View
1699	920	173	NCBG staff	1942-01-01	View
2313	1331	81	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
3142	1967	74	NCBG staff	1967-12-31	View
3143	1967	77	NCBG staff	1967-12-31	View
3144	1967	6	NCBG staff	1986-12-22	View
3145	1967	54	NCBG staff	1986-12-22	View
3146	1967	57	NCBG staff	1986-12-22	View
3147	1967	76	NCBG staff	1986-12-22	View
3148	1967	78	NCBG staff	1986-12-22	View
3149	1967	79	NCBG staff	1986-12-22	View
3150	1967	241	NCBG staff	2001-06-12	View
3151	1967	1	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
4593	2763	8	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
4594	2763	8	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
6073	3766	52	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
6074	3766	199	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
6832	4504	200	NCBG staff	1993-03-01	View
7057	4728	200	NCBG staff	1993-03-01	View
7448	5029	202	NCBG staff	1992-01-01	View
7575	5149	203	NCBG staff	1992-01-01	View
8175	5661	204	NCBG staff	1993-01-01	View
8826	6171	2	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
10989	7785	138	NCBG staff	1999-06-01	View
11760	8570	205	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
11774	8584	205	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
11786	8596	205	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
11791	8601	205	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
11792	8602	205	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
12015	8768	65	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
12035	8783	71	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
12039	8787	66	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
12043	8791	68	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
12065	8807	70	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View
13015	0	15	Liloia	0000-00-00	View
13057	0	25	Liloia	0000-00-00	View
13247	0	105	Wait	0000-00-00	View
13420	0	205	NCBG staff	0000-00-00	View

USDA PLANTS DATABASE

USDA Symbol: LIST2
USDA Common Name: Sweetgum
Native Status: L48 (N)
Distribution: USA (AL, AR, CA, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, IL, IN, KY, LA, MA, MD, MO, MS, NC, NJ, NY, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, VA, WV)
Duration: Perennial
Growth Habit: Tree

NATIONAL WETLAND INDICATOR STATUS

Region:	AGCP	AK	AW	CB	EMP	GP	HI	MW	NCNE	WMVE
Status:	FAC		FAC		FAC	FAC		FACW	FAC	FAC

This information is derived from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 2016 National Wetland Plant List, Version 3.3 (Lichvar, R.W., D.L. Banks, W.N. Kirchner, and N.C. Melvin. 2016. The National Wetland Plant List: 2016 wetland ratings. Phytoneuron 2016-30: 1-17. Published 28 April 2016. ISSN 2153 733X). Regions: AGCP-Atlantic and Gulf Coastal Plain, AK-Alaska, AW-Arid West, CB-Caribbean, EMP-Eastern Mountains and Piedmont, GP-Great Plains, HI-Hawaii, MW-Midwest, NCNE-Northcentral and Northeast, WMCV-Western Mountains, Valleys & Coast

WEAKLEY FLORA

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Liquidambar styraciflua
COMMON NAME: Sweet Gum, Red Gum
SYNONYMY: [= C, F, FNA, G, GW, K, Mo, Pa, RAB, S, Va, W, WH3, WV]
PHENOLOGY: Apr-May; Aug-Sep.
HABITAT: Swamp forests, floodplains, moist forests, depressional wetlands, old fields, disturbed areas.
COMMENTS: CT west to s. OH, s. IL and OK, south to s. FL, TX, and Guatemala. One of the most spectacular of our trees in the fall; a single tree often has a mixture of green, yellow, orange, dark red, bronze, and purple leaves. The sap was previously gathered as a source of chewing gum. The bark is one of the favorite foods of beavers. Although sometimes thought of as a small and weedy tree, Liquidambar reaches its greatest abundance and size in Coastal Plain swamp forests, where it can reach 2 meters in diameter. Along with such species as Pinus taeda, Quercus phellos, and others, Liquidambar is a good example of a primarily bottomland tree which has proven to be an excellent colonizer of disturbed uplands.
RANGE MAP: Liquidambar styraciflua.png

Key to Map Symbols

ABOUT FAMILY (Weakley Flora)
Altingiaceae Lindley 1846 (Sweet-gum Family)
SUMMARY: A monogeneric family of 1 genus and about 15 species, trees, of e. Asia, Indomalaysia, e. North America, Central America, and e. Mediterranean.
REFERENCE: Ickert-Bond & Wen (2013); Endress in Kubitzki, Rohwer, & Bittrich (1993); Hoot, Magallï¿½n, and Crane (1999).

ABOUT GENUS (Weakley Flora)
Liquidambar L. (Sweetgum)
SUMMARY: A genus of about 15 species, trees, north temperate, of e. North America, Central America (Mexico to Nicaragua), e. Asia (s. China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Cambodia), and e. Mediterranean (Turkey, Rhodos, Cyprus). The circumscription of Liquidambar here follows Ickert-Bond & Wen (2013) in including Altingia and Semiliquidambar.
REFERENCE: Endress in Kubitzki, Rohwer, & Bittrich (1993); Li & Donoghue (1999).

HERBARIUM RESOURCES

SERNEC: Find Liquidambar styraciflua in Southeast Regional Network of Experts and Collections (if available)
UNC SERNEC: Find Liquidambar styraciflua in University of North Carolina Chapel Hill Herbarium - Southeast Regional Network of Experts and Collections (if available)

WEB RESOURCES

USDA: Find Liquidambar styraciflua in USDA Plants
NPIN: Find Liquidambar styraciflua in NPIN Database
FNA: Find Liquidambar styraciflua in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Liquidambar styraciflua

IMAGE USE RECORDS

ID IMAGE: 15384 - Primary Image FloraQuest Plant Detail Page (Landscape Preferred)
ID IMAGE1: 15384 - Primary Image WOTAS
ID IMAGE2: 15382 - Secondary Image WOTAS
ID IMAGE3: 5171 - Primary Image Plant Sale Sign (Landscape Only)
ID IMAGE4: 0 - Primary Image New Plant Sale Label (Portrait Only)