American Sweetgum is a popular ornamental tree, grown for its intense fall colors, but it also has some drawbacks:
* The wood is brittle and the tree drops branches easily in storms.
* The spiked "gumballs" can be unpleasant to walk on (in fact in California they are known as "ankle biters" or "ankle twisters"), and their profusion can leave a lawn lumpy, since the fruit do not decay well, unless removed.
* Branches may have ridges or "wings" that cause more surface area, increasing weight of snow and ice accumulation on the tree.
Our sweetgum tree on the tree lawn is a great shade tree, and the spiky balls have never bothered me like they bother some neighbors. In the fall, it does turn bright yellow, orange, red, and purple. It makes me happy.But it does drop branches, and worse, it produces babies all over my front yard. I will forever be plucking these out of the ground.
1 comment:
I can relate to the "ankle twister" nickname. I always try to watch where I step out there when the ground is covered. They've gotten the best of me before -- and not just there but down the street from me here at home.
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