Liquidambar styraciflua 'WORPLESDON'

Sweetgums are highly ornamental trees or shrubs which have been on top of the popularity list for centuries. These come from North America from where they spread to nearly whole world: from colder parts of temperate regions to southern countries where summer temperatures easily reach 40°C. Their give-away are star-shaped leaves which can easily be mistaken for maple leaves, and their autumn colours which are simply breathtaking.

Worplesdon is a popular sweetgum variety among both growers as well as customers. It is a reliable and hardy selection that grows well without any additional maintenance. It has deep green, deciduous leaves that are star-shaped, deeply lobed, often with a pair of small teeth beneath each tip. The most attractive display begins in end September when they start turning golden-orange, pink and scarlet red, and deep purple and burgundy red later. Coloured leaves remain on the tree for a considerable period of time. On well established plants they persist into December.

Worplesdon does not produce fissured, corky bark as the species, its bark is smooth and grey. It grows slowly or medium fast into an elegant tree with a neat, quite regular, pyramidal crown already on young trees. If you wish to keep it smaller or give it a different shape you can prune it at the end of winter. Another nice feature is the fruit. Formed in about 3 cm wide spiny spheres they can be quite attractive to look at and a bit irritating when stepped on barefoot once they have hardened up, if not cleared from pavements or lawns in spring.

Sweet gums are soil tolerant but prefer semi-fertile, deep, evenly moist but well-drained soil that should be acidic or at least neutral. It will not thrive on chalk or lime. Once established they can take both temporary flooding and drought. The more acidic and moist soil you can provide (by adding peat and mulching the roots with bark) the better autumn colours can be expected. The location should be sunny as it does not tolerate shaded areas. If you buy a plant taller than say 1.5m stake it well for minimum of 2 or rather 3 years. Plants older than 3 years are fully hardy to about -27°C to -29°C (USDA zone 5).

Last update 19-04-2007; 18-11-2011