Poisonous Sweet Gum Tree Balls

I think she may have ingested them this morning.

Poisonous sweet gum tree balls. This plant s genus. Sweet gum is one of the main valuable forest trees in the southeastern united states and is a popular ornamental tree in temperate climates. The sweet gum s primary liability according to the makers of this list are the thousands of spiny brown seed balls gum balls if you will that it casts upon the ground around it. Sweet gum trees also have unusual fruit.

If your sweet gum is too tall to spray or if you don t want to attempt spraying a small tree you can stop fruit production by having a certified arborist administer a trunk injection. While you can t eat the balls or the seeds pioneers once peeled the bark and scraped the resin like solid to produce chewing gum and medicines. Birth control injections for sweet gum trees. A tree that is a candidate for the injection must have a trunk at least 2 inches in diameter and the tree cannot have received a spray or soil treatment within two weeks.

On our typical route there are 3 trees that bear these weird little balls. The tree s dark grayish brown twigs bear unusual corky ridges that lend the tree a peculiar angularity. According to the lazy landscaper these hard brown spiky balls that can create some serious hazards. While the trees were popular for builders and municipalities to plant due to their medium to fast rate of growth and beautiful color they have become an.

It s currently flu season which means many people are hom. Every subdivision from florissant to kirkwood to maryland heights has several of them. The balls of the trees are modified fruits that house the seeds until the balls ripen and release the seeds. American sweetgum trees can be found throughout must of the eastern us.

Sweet gum trees are so beautiful until you want to walk barefoot through your lawn. Additionally the sweet gum s spiky gum balls hang conspicuously from the tree s smaller. The certified arborist will inject the. They are hard round balls about 1 1 2 inches in diameter and covered with sharp little bristles that can hurt a dog s paws.

Simon has crashed his bike more than once when his front tire hit one. Are these things harmful to dogs. It s sweet gum ball time of year again and that means you may find yourself slipping on these prickly round seeds. I think my dog has eaten some sweet gum balls from a sweet gum tree.

It is currently classified in the plant family altingiaceae but was formerly considered a member of the hamamelidaceae. Before you write them off as just a nuisance consider these simple ways to utilize the sweet gum ball tree and it s falling fruit. She always is trying to eat something but now she s very lethargic and is drinking lots of water. The american sweet gum is a popular tree in the st.

Despite these nuisances we always slow down to take a look and to collect the unusual alien balls we always end up with. It is recognizable by the combination of its five pointed star shaped leaves and its hard spiked fruits.