One for Lucky

Hey Lucky! Kevin asked me to enquire on his behalf if you were aware that he's been spreading seed from this superior specimen around Hopkinsville . . .

Ah ha ha! The gruesome twosome is out after poor Lucky's neighborhood too!

Hey, how does he rate? How come you didn't rename him?

Pretty lush looking thing there (Sweetgum for you who may not know).

I don't understand the story, but I don't have to either!

My darn Liquidamber styraciflua 'Cherokee®' - croaked on me last winter with just the tiny 4" pot buried in mulch on the north (sold wood fenced) side of my home. Was looking forward to planting that sometime when I move...

LaTa!

Dax:

Lucky is the most outspoken opponent to the lowly Sweetgum. He has taken it upon himself to remove every one on his property. The one in my pic is 'Moraine' which is supposedly very cold hardy. I bought it for 80% off a couple falls ago. Not much growth yet, but those fall sale plants are not always in the best shape, plus a cherry blew over on it, AND we had the queen mother of droughts last year. I hope its putting down some roots this year.

Yeah, Dax, Kevin, Guy, and John love poking (good-natured) fun at me about my disdain for Liquidambar - and sometimes they make me cry, I'm laughing so hard. VV has almost made me pee my pants from time to time.
Yes, I'm from Alabama, and no, these shoes don't hurt my feet, but I've stepped on enough sweetgum balls in my bare feet through the years that I sure as h-e-double toothpicks don't want any on MY place.
Y'all are free to plant all of 'em you want.

Lucky, that's why I too ordered this 'Cherokee®' cultivar.

Kevin - now that makes sense. A big DUH! on my part..

Later pee in the pants and friends.

Dax

You still haven't renamed him yet- cluck cluck cluck!

http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/587800/

I'm still trying to find the thread I started for him a few months ago. Rats, I can't find it.

GREEN FINGERS!

The others all earned their nicknames. If he is to have a better one than the one he's already using, it'll have to come from sudden inspiration, not planning. How about YOU coming up with one for him?
Guy S.

I always thaught that if anyone ever actually bought a sweet gum you should get their picture.So I owe someone a BIG THANKS.Mike

Mike:

Just not a common tree up here. I have seen the sum total of one, and that was at the Morton Arboretum. I would have said the same about things like River Birch, Red Maple, Silver Maple, Alders, etc.---who in their right mind would buy one when they grow like weeds? One man's trash is another man's treasure.

Don't take hard,I ment no harm,and I assume you know what they are like down here,its like me seeing honeysuckle in seed catalogs,and I wish I could send you mine.BTW,it might be nice to live where sweetgums don't grow out of your walk way,foundation,through an old car if it sits very long.Mike

Mike,
I know what you're talking about. I grew up just across the Chattahoochee from Columbus - and while pines are king down there, I suspect that in sheer numbers and invasive potential, sweetgums nudge 'em out.
I thought for several years that I was free of 'em, but to my dismay one day a couple of years ago, I stumbled across a spot in the woods littered with those little spiky landmines. Sure enough, there are(were) a couple of really big ones - they're now serving as 'snags' for wildlife habitat. There's still a few smaller, young ones that haven't yet had a taste of my chainsaw and Tordon, but they're on my 'to do' list.
Saw some 'Rotundiloba' planted as street trees on a visit to Washington DC, a few years(they hadn't yet started heaving the sidewalks, but they were big enough that that eventuality is probably coming to fruition now. They were interesting enough to make me *think* about planting one - but then I got to considering the seedling rootstock(I presume they're grafted/budded?) - and quickly put that moment of insanity away.

Lucky, my parents lived in St. James Missouri after retirement. It's "sweetgum city" if there ever was one. Someone there must have cornered the market on gums about 30 years ago, and I think they outnumber all other trees combined.

You should take a vacation there for desensitization . . .

Guy S.

Most of the streets in my immediate area are lined with Sweetgums, and just about every year their "spiky landmines" clog up the sewer drains and then fall leaves add to the clog creating a nearly impenetrable dam. Eventually the city comes out and has to shovel the drains clean again.

The other side of the story: They are very site-adaptable, and an occasional sweetgum in the right place can be a beautiful accent tree in every season. As with anything else, overabundance or improper placement is its downfall.

Guy S.

Anyone ever plant the smaller variety oconee? That is still on my want list so I am just curious.

Bill

My Grandma says she thinks this Sweetgum to be 30 years old. She said she remembers it 'wasn't that long ago' which I was a bit surprised to learn. Then again, I know 0 about Sweetgums, however, had I have been able to guess, I would have placed it at 100 years old. That tells you just how much I don't know.

Anyway, I did a 4 1/2 foot up the trunk circumference measurement and found it to be at 76 and 1/2 inches or (6' 4 1/2").

Here's some photos:

Dax

Main Branching @ ~4.5 feet up from ground level:

Another Shot:

(Trunk):

And lastly, what I call 'the nuts of it all':

Dax

Well I just learned the Illinois State Sweetgum (1984) had a circumference of 13' 8" and a height of 91 feet.

I think we have a small one here folks.

Worth a shot. I thought it was a monster of course.

Dax

That tree was probably planted around the same time as that van in the background was purchased. Cool branch pattern.

Bill

Dax, you need to go south to Jefferson County or farther to see the native stands here in Illinois. Preferably go all the way to Alexander County and see the old growth forest on the south part of the island at Horseshoe Lake.

Guy S.

Interesting. I'm always roadtrippin'.

Thanks.

I know some of you have seen this but I'm going to show again.

Taxodium distichum in Southern Illinois' town: Giant City:

Dax

And a couple more from the campground/national forest down there I stayed at which the name escapes me at the moment... Regardless, a beautiful area.

They called this, 'Devil's Tower' I believe -

Dax

Another shot of some of the Taxodium's - my dog and friend included:

One more:

I love Taxodium. Great photos Dax!

Hey Lucky, I found the thread with the special photo I posted for you-
http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/614392/

Took me a while but I knew it was out there somewhere.

Dax, here are the locations for you:
1. The largest Taxodium at Big Cypress Acess Area on the south bank of the Cache River, just about 100 feet from the parking lot;
2. Devil's Stand Table in Giant City State Park;
3. Another Taxodium along the Cache River at Big Cypress Access Area;
4. The entrance trail to the Giant City rock formation.

Guy S.

Mucho mucho!

Looks like I'll be pimpin' soon enough.

Have a nice day everyone.

Dax

Lucky, you should grow one of these. Sweetgum-like foliage and no gumballs. Good fall color as you can see one leaf changing. Kinda hard to find though.

Bill

Hey Lucky -- I didn't see you at the NNGA conference in Macomb -- were you there?
Guy S.

Bill--what is that? Kinda looks like Acer oliverianum(which I have killed.......twice).

I have seen red maples for sale at Wal-Mart with leaves that look just like that, which leads me to believe they are not really red maples.

Guy,
No, I was unable to attend the NNGA meeting - rest assured, I'd have sought you out if I'd been there. Wife & eldest son are currently touring Italy, so I'm single-parenting the other three, working, and looking after the cattle while they're gone.
Was Don Cobb in attendance? Don & I used to correspond & trade plant materials on a regular basis, but I've not seen or heard from him in at least a couple of years.