Black Gum Tree Balls

The black tupelo black gum grows in acidic loamy moist rich sandy silty loam well drained soils.

Black gum tree balls. This means that only one tree is needed for the flowers to be pollinated and a single tree can produce the spiky fruits even when another sweet gum tree is not in sight. The wood is used for veneer plywood boxes pulp tool handles gunstocks docks and wharves. Bees make good honey from black gum blossoms. Black gum will not tolerate alkaline soil and may suffer damage from pollution.

The tree should be transplanted in spring either balled and burlapped or as a container plant. The spiky clusters are actually balls of fruit with tiny seeds inside that birds and squirrels snack on. This black tupelo black gum has oval rounded shape. Fungi invade and over time cause the wood to rot and decay.

Black gum or sour gum tree facts can be rather fascinating for arborists who study this hardy towering native species. It offers an impressive scarlet fall color and lacks the spiny balls of the unrelated sweet gum. Black gum is susceptible to leaf spots caused by a fungus. The round fruit balls are produced from fertilized flowers.

On this early spring day the tree is still a skeleton although leaf buds are just beginning to emerge and dozens of sweet gum balls dangle from its naked branches like shriveled christmas tree ornaments. The leaves flutter easily in the slightest of breezes and form a rounded canopy. Nyssa sylvatica commonly known as tupelo black tupelo black gum or sour gum is a medium sized deciduous tree native to eastern north america from the coastal northeastern united states and southern ontario south to central florida and eastern texas as well as mexico. The sweet gum tree a forty foot tall sweet gum tree rises from the northeast corner of my back yard.

This black tupelo black gum does best in full sun partial shade. You will need to watch the tree over time to see how extensive the damage becomes. Black gum has few disease or insect problems. Although it will grow in full sun or partial shade fall color is enhanced by sunny conditions.

As a monoecious plant a sweet gum bears male and female flowers. The leaves of the black gum tree are an elongated oval shape that offer a brilliant fall show. Just like leaves they must fall so the tree can prep for new growth. By mid fall the balls are dead and seedless.

Heart rot occurs after a tree has had open wounds occur in the trunk.