Woody > Liquidambar > Liquidambar styraciflua > Liquidambar styraciflua 'Variegata'
Liquidambar styraciflua
'Variegata'
Variegated American Sweetgum
Mike's
Opinion
"
A very interesting tree, the one I photographed at Kew Gardens, London, England was quite striking in its maturity.
Michael Pascoe, NDP., ODH., CLT., MSc. (Plant Conservation)
"
| Family |
| Altingiaceae (Hamamelidaceae) |
| Genus |
| Liquidambar |
| Species |
| styraciflua |
| Cultivar |
| 'Variegata' |
| Category |
| Woody |
| Type |
| Tree (deciduous) |
| Pronunciation |
| USDA Hardiness Zone |
| 6-9 |
| Canadian Hardiness Zone |
| 5b |
| Temperature (°C) |
| -10 |
| Temperature (°F) |
| -23 |
| Height |
| 15 m |
| Spread |
| 9 m |
Photographs
Description and Growing Information
Flowering Period
| General Description |
| The tree leaves are star shaped and resemble a maple, they are green with some cream spots. The fruit is mace shaped and the bark is corky looking. |
| Landscape |
| Urban sites, avenue trees and parkland trees. Most homeowners do not like it because of the fruit which is quite sharp and difficult to remove from the lawn. |
| Cultivation |
| Full sun in moist to dry soils, do not grow in alkaline soils as the tree will become chlorotic. |
| Shape |
| Rounded to loosely pyramidal |
| Growth |
| Slow |
| ID Characteristic |
| Pith is star shaped, fruit is mace shaped. |
| Habitat |
| Horticultural origin. |
| Bark/Stem Description |
| Grey brown colour, deep furrows, narrow ridges. Can become corky looking after 2 years, bark on new growth is glossy and a red/yellow colour. |
| Flower/Leaf Bud Description |
| The buds are yellow brown 5 cm long. The inner scales enlarge with the growing shoot becoming 1 cm long, green tipped with red. |
| Leaf Description |
| Variegated green and cream, leaves are star shaped often mistaken for maple, 5-7 lobes and are alternate in arrangement. |
| Fruit Description |
| Fruit is mace shaped, sharp looking and is found in clusters. They are difficultt to remove from the turf. |
| Colour Description |
| The colour of the leaves are green and cream bark is grey brown. |
| Texture Description |
| Leaves have a glossy feel to it and bark is very coarse. Fruit is very rough and sharp. |
| Propagation |
| Propagated by grafting onto the species rootstock. |
References
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