Is Sweet Gum A Hardwood Tree

Is sweet gum a hardwood or softwood.

Is sweet gum a hardwood tree.

Because the sapwood is so wide only older mature trees will yield the darker redgum heartwood lumber. Timber from the sweet gum tree is a finely textured moderately heavy white colored sapwood with a light pink tint. American sweetgum liquidambar styraciflua also known as american storax hazel pine bilsted redgum satin walnut star leaved gum alligatorwood or simply sweetgum is a deciduous tree in the genus liquidambar native to warm temperate areas of eastern north america and tropical montane regions of mexico and central america sweet gum is one of the main valuable forest trees in the. Sweet gum trees are found throughout the eastern united states.

Despite the world demand for liquidambar through the centuries little was done with the yield of the north american sweet gum tree. It did serve as a curative for confederate soldiers dysentery and was harvested during the second world war when asian supplies were cut off. Such trees can grow to be as old as 400 years old and they can reach towering heights of 150 feet. The wood has a unique reddish brown color with sapwood that s nearly white and black grain running through the hardwood.

Sapgum is widely available at low cost while redgum is more uncommon and prices can be in the mid range for a domestic hardwood with prices for figured and or quartersawn pieces costing more. It is not an invasive species. As you learned earlier sweet gum is easily identifiable as it comes from a tree that produces star shaped leaves that contain five points along with spiked fruit. The liquidambar styraciflua growth rate is moderate to rapid.

However it can be a pioneer tree species and will be one of the first species to recolonize an open area but if you leave succession to do its part you will see that sweet gum certainly do not take over in the long run. Sweet gum wood though has been another story. A sweet gum is a deciduous tree in the witch hazel family that ranges in height from 60 to 100 feet and has a narrow oval canopy. It s considered a valuable tree used for lumber and furniture production as well as for ornamental purposes.

I now fall sweet gum in early winter and let the logs lay sealed in the shade a couple of feet off the ground for several months. Hmmm that s not all true. Look for the absolute straightest trunks with the least crotch wood. A tree can appear to have balanced weight distribution in the crown but there s no way to know how the tree has responded to that stress.