Planting Sweetgum Trees
It's no secret how much I love planting trees, and this year, we're planting so many interesting and beautiful specimens.
Every year, my gardeners and I go through the inventory of potted seedlings and plan where they will go - some in the woodlands, and some in designated areas around my home. I have planted thousands of trees since I purchased my Bedford, New York property. I feel very strongly about giving back to the earth - the more trees planted, the better. Last week, the crew planted a collection of sweetgum trees, Liquidambar styraciflua, in a clearing outside my Northeast paddock and near my American beech tree grove.
Enjoy these photos.
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- Every year around this time, my gardeners and outdoor grounds crew plant as many trees as possible before the ground freezes. I purchase a lot of trees as bare-root seedlings. A bare root tree is a dormant tree shipped with no soil around its roots. We pot them up and nurture them for a couple of years before they are placed in more permanent locations. I think doing this gives the trees a better chance of survival.
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- So far this season, some of the trees we’ve planted include the tulip tree. Our tulip trees are the tallest at the farm – these trees can grow more than 120-feet. In the late spring bright yellowish-green and orange flowers bloom which resemble tulip flowers. The silhouette of the tree’s leaves is also tulip-shaped. Together, these features give the tulip tree its name. The tulip tree is also known as tulip poplar, yellow poplar, whitewood, and tulip magnolia. However, tree is not a true poplar. Instead, it belongs to the magnolia family.
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- We also planted bur oak trees. Quercus macrocarpa, commonly spelled burr oak, is a species of oak tree native to eastern North America. It is also called mossycup oak, mossycup white oak, blue oak, or scrub oak.
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- We planted butternuts, Juglans cinerea, also known as white walnut – a species of walnut native to the eastern United States and southeast Canada.
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- We planted evergreens such as these spruce trees, Picea glauca, a species of spruce native to the northern temperate and boreal forests in North America.
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- And of course, maples. The maple tree, Acer, has recognizable leaves with pointed lobes and with deep indentations between the lobes. The leaves are a bold green color.
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- Most recently we planted a selection of sweetgums. American sweetgum, Liquidambar styraciflua, also known as American storax, hazel pine, redgum, satin-walnut, star-leaved gum, and alligatorwood. It 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 southeastern United States, and is a popular ornamental tree in temperate climates.
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- The sweetgum features star-shaped leaves with five lobes, occasionally seven, that are medium green in color, toothed along the margins and four to seven inches in length.
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- Sweetgum trees have light gray bark with vertical, irregular ridges covering a tall, straight trunk.
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- Here, Ryan has already placed a good number of sweetgums for planting. When mature, these trees will grow to about 60 to 70 feet tall with up to a 45 foot spread, so they must have ample room between them. Always consider the size of a mature specimen when planting.
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- Domi digs all the holes. He is a fast and strong digger. Each hole is about 10 to 12 inches deep. These holes are also quite wide – one should be at least two to five times as wide as the root ball. The hole sides should be slanted and the hole should be no deeper than the root ball is tall, so it can be placed directly on undisturbed soil. Digging a wide planting hole helps to provide the best opportunity for roots to expand into its new growing environment.
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- Then Pasang follows behind to plant each tree. He places it into the hole to ensure it can be planted at the proper depth – planting a tree too deep causes bark deterioration at the soil line, which can eventually kill the tree. Pasang also positions the tree so the best side faces the carriage road.
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- Next, Pasang inspects the roots. He scarifies the root ball and loosens up the roots to stimulate growth. This is very important to do, especially if the roots are densely bound in a circular pattern or have started growing in the shape of the container. These specimens have healthy roots, so only a light scarifying is needed.
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- A scoop of good fertilizer is then sprinkled on the surrounding soil. Always feed! My soil is filled with nutrients, but I still make sure everything is well fed. Often, plants can’t get all the necessary nutrients from garden soil alone, so they need a boost from extra soil amendments.
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- Then Pasang backfills the hole with the nutrient-rich soil.
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- And lightly tamps down with his foot to pack the soil around the plant roots. This ensures good soil to root contact and eliminates air pockets that could otherwise result in dead roots.
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- Soon after the tree is planted, Chhiring drops a bamboo stake just next to the tree. I feel it is very important to stake every tree, so it is well supported and well-marked as it develops.
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- Chhiring drives the stake at least a foot into the ground several inches away from the newly planted tree.
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- All the ties are made of jute twine. Chhiring cuts all the twine to the same size so nothing is wasted. And, we double the twine to provide added security in case of strong winds.
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- The twine is twisted before knotting, so the tree or vine or cane is not crushed or strangled. Each piece is tied just tight enough to keep the tree secure, but not break it.
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- Nearby are several more mature sweetgums. American sweetgums grow in a pyramidal shape, becoming more oval or rounded with age. These trees also grow at a medium to fast rate, with height increases of anywhere from 13 inches to more than 24 inches per year. The trees’ seeds are eaten by eastern goldfinches, purple finches, sparrows, mourning doves, northern bobwhites and wild turkeys. Small mammals such as chipmunks, red squirrels and gray squirrels also enjoy the fruits and seeds of the sweetgum tree.
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- And in fall, these trees provide brilliant fall color, with leaves turning vibrant shades of yellow, orange, red, and purple. These newly planted sweetgums will look wonderful in the landscape. I am so fortunate to have the room to plant lots of beautiful and interesting trees.
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