Check Elk/Bear Permit Application Results, Managing Invasive Species in Your Community, Wildflowers, Grasses and Other Nonwoody Plants. I remember when I was in grade school there was a very large and magnificent Sweet Gum Tree on our playground. This is a conical shaped tree which becomes rounded with age. How to Pick Up Sweet Gum Tree Balls and Then Use Them. Original Price $11.00 Archeological research of pre-Columbian Aztecs discovered evidence of a large trade of Liquidambar for incense. All About Sweet Gum Balls in Magic! - YouTube The American Sweet Gum female flowers give way to the infamous gum balls, hard, spherical, bristly fruiting clusters to 1.5" diameter. USES: Use your witches burrs by adding them spell jars, load them with herbs and oils for your specific intention, cast them into a fire, or use as a . Sweet gum seeds are eaten by many species of birds, including goldfinch, purple finch, sparrows, mourning doves, wild turkey, northern bobwhite, and wood duck, as well as by squirrels and chipmunks. Applying the balsam to the skin might help with chigger and other insect bites. Two more tidbits: The sap is still used to add flavor to smoking tobacco and is also available at the pharmacy as an ingredient in the compound tincture of benzoin. October 14, 2022 by jai. It is a large deciduous tree that has a beautiful leaf pattern. Divine theme by Restored 316, Divine Resonance Magic Certification Course. I am currently working on some future plans to set up a shop where some of my local herbs can be purchased, but it is still in the planning stage, however I will work with you privately if I have the resources available to me. Sweet gum is a deciduous, forest-dwelling tree, growing as high as 150 feet, the tree is covered with rough, gray bark; but the branchlets are reddish-brown and often have corky ridges. The seeds contained within all those spikes are anticonvulsant and have possible applications for epilepsy. Sweet gum is also a larval host plant for the beautiful luna moth. She is the author of, The Importance Of Livestock Newborn Umbilical Care, Raise & Market Specialty Poultry For Meat & Profit, Start Collecting & Using The Water On Your Farm, Successful Strategies For Profitable U-Pick Farms, Get to Know the Medicinal Uses of Sweet Gum Sap & Fruit. https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=47846235caption, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6315721, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4441155/, http://christianhomekeeper.org/sweet-gum-tincture/, http://www.lostcreekwitch.com/98/sweetgum/, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liquidambar_styraciflua, http://www.ntfpinfo.us/docs/other/VirginiaTech2001-SweetgumFactsheet.pdf, https://nature.mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/sweet-gum, https://ufi.ca.uky.edu/treetalk/ecobot-sweetgum, https://www.arborday.org/trees/treeguide/TreeDetail.cfm?ItemID=928, https://hvp.osu.edu/pocketgardener/source/description/li_iflua.html, The Difference Between Addlers Tongue and Adders Tongue, The Difference Between Addlers Tongue and AddersTongue. The five lobed star-shaped leaves often confuse people who think it may be a maple . But even more fascinating than the fact that crafters are willing to actually pay money for "gum balls" is their apparent use in Hoodoo. Youll have to love the tree for all its other qualities. If, only if, I were a craft person (I'm not), I'd be in heaven! If you are interested in working with Sweet Gum but do not have this tree available to you and wish to purchase some, send me a message and I will try to help you out with that. Bark is brown to gray, very rough with deep grooves and narrow, slightly scaly ridges. I might change my mind about which tree I love the best in fall. Truthfully, it is probably my favorite fall color. Sweet Gum (Liquidambar styraciflua) Healing, spirituality, enchantment, enlightenment, meditation, leadership and protection. Original Price $4.99 Other websites I visited, stated in a nutshell that Sweet gum tree medicinal uses when made into a balsam or salve, it is used for skin conditions, hemorrhoids, ringworm scabies and frostbite. More recently, storax has proven to be a strong antimicrobial agent even against multidrug resistant bacteria such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. The Sweetgum tree is native to the southeastern United States and a member of a genus made up of only six species. The leaves also have a camphor odor when crushed. Both development strategies optimize growth, survival, and reproduction with the tree's food reserves and environmental challenges. It is also used internally for sore throats, coughs, colds, asthma, bronchitis, cystitis, vaginal discharge, strokes, and is it indicated to have an effect on some cancers. Many people prize sweet gum as a landscaping tree because of its beautiful fall color. Like Noah suggested, you can always throw them in your compost for some much needed brown material. Fallen, opened fruits are often abundant beneath the trees; these have been popularly nicknamed "burr balls" or "gum balls". $3.99, $4.99 Turning off personalized advertising opts you out of these sales. Learn more in our Privacy Policy., Help Center, and Cookies & Similar Technologies Policy. Get started on your magical practice today! Would you like email updates of new search results? The seed balls become noticeable in the late summer and fall as they turn from a shade of green to brown. The sweet gum tree was to pioneer youth the rustic equivalent of a gum-ball machine. Chewing gum - Wikipedia 2 We have a sweet gum (Liquidambar styraciflua) in the front yard. You find it's magickal properties called on most commonly in american folk magick and african american hoodoo. Sweet gum sap has caught the attention of medical researchers, and we know that much of its folkloric uses are now backed with scientific reasoning. They also work to ward off annoying baby brothers. Harvest the seed capsules at the end of October or November, dry in a warm place and extract the seed by shaking the capsule. Making A SweetGum Ball Wreath!#baganut #nutdynastyNut Dynasty is a series of educational videos on the growing and harvesting of nut trees. Sweet gum seeds are eaten by many species of birds, including goldfinch, purple finch, sparrows, mourning doves, wild turkey, northern bobwhite, and wood duck, as well as by squirrels and chipmunks. gardngrim@gmail.com Another use they find in magick, is that they are believed to focus and augment spiritual power of the spells and rituals. 345-354 Love those things :)Reply, Never miss an update! Sweet-gum | The Morton Arboretum American Sweetgum | Yale Nature Walk Sweet gum is a large tree with a long, cylindrical trunk, pyramidal crown, and corky wings on branches and twigs. That tradition really comes from West Africa. How to Pick Up Sweet Gum Tree Balls and Then Use Them Sweet Gum balls (permaculture forum at permies) Henriette's Herbal Homepage on Liquidambar. sweet-gum, American sweet-gum, sweet gum, sweetgum All pictures (5) Share; All pictures. Join our Green Witch Living Loyalty Program, GWL Rewards. The name Gum tree originated from the sap excreted from the bark that looks gum like known as manna. The tree grows best in deep, moist soil (it can only tolerate very moderate drought), with a pH no higher than 7. Its alternate, serrate, palmately lobed (star-shaped with 5-7 toothed lobes) leaves are dark green and . Economic Botany & Cultural History: Sweetgum. According to Articles from Pharmacognosy Reviews : Meanwhile, many other kinds of trees exhibit determinate (or fixed) growth: they only produce a set number of leaves per growing season. Share Tweet. Sweet Gum | Wood Flowers Now, I'll admit I had no idea what 'Hoodoo' was when I read about it along with sweet gum balls. Storax produced from L. orientalis, or Turkish sweetgum, is referred to as Asian storax while storax derived from L. styraciflua is called American storax. ACS Omega. Enter your email address below to receive AGrowingGarden.com posts by email:Delivered by FeedBurner, The Incredible Beauty of Crepe Myrtle Bark. The Magic of Trees: A Guide to Their Sacred Wisdom & Metaphysical Properties. Darryl Patton at The Southern Herbalist suggests boiling the green balls and drinking the decoction for its anti viral properties. You've already signed up for some newsletters, but you haven't confirmed your address. The others species of Sweet Gum are found only in Asia. Using the burs in an alternative way. I never thought picking up those darn gum balls would be so much FUN!. Sweetgum Trees (Gumball Tree): Types, Leaves - Leafy Place The bark was used to make an infusion that was used as a sedative for nervous patients and for patients who were well in the day but sick during the night. Sale Price $31.96 Flowers form in spring followed by spiky, woody, ball-like fruits which hang from the branches. Wood is a type of tissue made of cellulose and lignin that many plants develop as they mature whether they are woody or not. Green or unripe seed pods are high in a substance called shikimic acid, which is used as an antiviral both in herbal medicine and in commercial drugs like Tamiflu. Shrubs are less than 13 feet tall, with multiple stems. Sweetgum tree balls: Gum tree balls on the American sweetgum are coppery-brown rounded spiky capsules. The American sweetgum is often planted as a street tree in suburban areas, but it also can tend to form thickets within forests. Spanish explorers of the American South also noted the resemblance and recorded the tree as they trudged through southern swamps. Witches Burrs | Pagans & Witches Amino 10 Coolest Magical Foods In Harry Potter - CBR Tell Amazon: Prevent price gouging during emergencies, What is the witching hour? Gum Tree Spiritual Meaning - Sentient Metaphysics They are also believed to hold power to break hexes, or deflect them back to the source, much like a mirror would, when appropriately used. Uses for a Sweet Gum Tree | Home Guides | SF Gate THE GEOLOGICAL HISTORY OF THE SWEET GUM AND WITCH HAZEL on JSTOR The leaves also contain many of the medicinally active compounds. It can be an excellent shade tree in the right location, away . I Never Knew That! --Sweetgum Balls - little*big*harvest Get Your Gods and Goddesses apparel today! In parts of the deep South it is called alligator wood, gum tree, or incense tree. ), but they are ok. And they can be rather pretty in the fall when their leaves turn yellow and then into nice purple-red colors. Please enter the answer to 1 + 1 below. Spring Flowers of the Sweet Gum Tree - Liquidambar . Make the investment in . Several species are grown as ornamental trees for their showy fall foliage. The Magic of Trees: A Guide to Their Sacred Wisdom & Metaphysical Properties. The city of St. James is called the sweet gum capital of Missouri for its many streets lined with the tree. Herban Myths Debunked: Sweetgum, Shikimic Acid, and Tamiflu Personally, I am surrounded by Sweet Gum Trees and I am looking forward to working with them medicinally in the near future. A mulch of sweet gum balls around your favorite plants will keep the snails away. At Davey, our arborists pinpoint the best application time each year using Nature Clock, a patent . styraciflua translates as flowing with styrax (sweet gum hence the common name). Shes practicing magic without even knowing it! Little did I know that 45 years later, I would be remembering that tree and learning such vital information about the significance of Sweet Gum Trees. I've certainly learned a lot about sweet gums since then though mostly because I've searched high and low for ways to get rid of the stinking "gum ball" seed pods they drop everywhere. Chemical analysis has found astringent tannins and antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory compounds in sweetgum, which make it effective in treating skin and mucosal infections. The trees gum resin, for which the tree is named, exudes from the bark of the tree when wounded. 1953;28:3549. Shikimic acid is not Tamiflu any more than . This name was derived from the tree's innate property of secreting a resin-like substance. The clusters of bristly tree balls persist on the tree until mid-winter or early spring. remembering account, browser, and regional preferences, remembering privacy and security settings, personalized search, content, and recommendations, helping sellers understand their audience, showing relevant, targeted ads on and off Etsy. The tree ranges between 80 to 150 feet in height. The roots of a sweetgum tree have also been known to lift sidewalks if planted too closely. And it's medicinal properties called on in medicines like Tamiflu . When the seeds mature they turn black, but while they are still yellow they contain shikimic acid, the same ingredient in Tamiflu that was originally harvested only from star anise.