Sweetgum tree

[Laurence Hope]

Does anyone know of a product with which I can sterilize my sweet gum (thats liquidamber to you non southerners) tree? I have to get rid of the "dingleberries" or the tree has to go.
I like the tree and want to keep it. I am specifically looking for a ground drench rather than a spray, since this tree is very tall.
Thanks
Laurence

[jrbbees]

I nutered 4 sweet gums this summer on my land.
We used a chain saw!

[Michael Bush]

I would expect a sweetgum to make some honey...

[Walliebee]

There's a product called Snipper.

http://www.treetech.net/DeflowerA/Snipper/SnipLabel.pdf

It's expensive, and can only be used by certified applicators.

[Scrapfe]

Does anyone know of a product with which I can sterilize my sweet gum...

I nutered 4... used a chain saw!

http://forestry.about.com/od/hardwoods/ss/sweetgum.htm

That sweetgum tree of yourn is way way out of place thair partner.
Most bee an Okie sweetgum Least wise this foresty fellow says it is. http://forestry.about.com/od/hardwoo...sweetgum_3.htm

I assume it's your sweetgum's balls (like those shown here) that is the reason you want to sterilize your sweetgum tree.
http://forestry.about.com/od/hardwoo...sweetgum_4.htm
http://forestry.about.com/od/hardwoo...sweetgum_5.htm

This sweetgum tree may be better suited to your property, but at any rate an inmature sweetgum tree is still pretty. However, you may want to try one of these round leaf or fruitless sweetgum trees next time.
http://forestry.about.com/od/hardwoo...sweetgum_6.htm

If you already have a round leaf sweetgum, well you may want to consider a product called a Husqvara 455
http://www.husqvarna.com/us/

[Laurence Hope]

Thank you all for your input.
I really like my sweet gum tree. Yes, it is out of it's natural range, but our climate here
in central CA allows many out of the area trees (and other plants) to thrive here. The problem is the balls. Because of our climate, the balls fall year around. One crop is finishing about the time the next starts falling. If this tree were out in the country, or even in the large back yard of our in town home, I would have no problem with it.

I like the fact that it is a beautiful shade tree that feeds the bees and many birds. The challenge is that the tree is in our front yard, and the balls drop on our driveway and the sidewalk next to the street. The tree is about 20 years old and the crop of gumballs gets
larger and larger each year.

My wife recently stepped on one on the driveway and slightly sprained her ankle. This got us to thinking about our elderly neighbors walking the sidewalk daily to get the mail in our cluster mailbox that serves our entire block. We don't want them to hurt themselves on the gumballs.

I looked at the label for Snipper and without saying so, it looks like it needs to be done
annually. I also shudder what that systemic stuff will do to any bees that attempt to forage on the dying flowers.

I think the answer is to remove the tree and replant with a Korean evodia.
Any additional comments or ideas will be appreciated.

Thanks,
Laurence

[warrior]

Chainsaw and a five year supply of roundup. It will continually send up sprouts from the roots until you totally kill off the roots (think battery) by removing all vegetation (think solar panel charger). Even then you are probably have volunteers for years from the balls.

[warrior]

I hate to disagree with Mr Bush but here in the heart of sweetgum country the bees make no honey from it. If it were me I would cut the sucker down and replace it with it's compatriate from this area Liriodendron tulipfera what us southerners call a poplar/yellow poplar or more properly tulip poplar. I think officially it's a tulip tree.

It is our main honey tree in most parts of the south.

[Michael Bush]

I don't know what they make for nectar, but most trees in the gum family seem to... do they flower? I can picture the balls as I'm sure I've seen these but I've never had one nor observed if bees worked them nor even when they bloom...

[paintingpreacher]

I too live in Sweetgum country. I have a list from the Mississippi Beekeeping Association of the main nectar and pollen plants in our area. Sweetgum is listed as only a source for pollen. I personally have never seen bees gathering pollen from the sweetgums. I have observed them gathering propolis from the trunk.

[warrior]

Mr Bush, there alot of different "gums" out there. Sweet gum Liquidamber styrifolia, the tree that we call a black gum is a tupelo Nyassa sylvatica and is an upland tree and does produce a small amount of nectar but not a major source and it's other family member is the Water Tupelo or Nyassa aquatica which is the famed swamp tree of tupelo honey fame.
In the west they have several imports from down under that are called gums most are some sort of eucalyptus and again are honey plants. It seems that the term gum has been applied to several new world and asian species by english speakers irregardless of actual familial relationships.
Now my interest is what is the original meaning of the term gum. What is it that these trees share in common to aquire the colloquial term gum? As a beek I always assumed it had something to to with a tendency to become hollow as old time beeks always referred to bee boxes, particularly the brood box, as gums. Of course it could refer to the sap as well as a long forgotten use for the sweet gum was sap collection for you guessed it chewing gum, hence it's name. I remember as a child seeing older specimens that had the tell tale slash marks where the sap had been collected (a very similar process as was done on pines for tar and turpentine). My grandfather collected .03 cents per syrup bucket that a neighbor collected off of the homeplace as recently as the 1930s.