Liquidambar styraciflua
Details Top
| Internal ID | UUID643ff48d6b1ed287458895 |
| Scientific name | Liquidambar styraciflua |
| Authority | L. |
| First published in | Sp. Pl. : 999 (1753) |
Ethnobotanical Use Top
Suggest a correction!
Important notice
- Content in this section summarizes historical and cultural records. It is not medical advice.
- Do not use plants for self-treatment. Safety, efficacy, and appropriate use are not established here.
- Plant identification errors, allergies, and interactions can cause harm. Consult qualified professionals for health questions.
- Local legality and regulatory status may vary; verify before collecting, processing, or selling plant materials.
Non-pharmacopoeial liquidambar resin is still collected from wild Liquidambar styraciflua and used locally. In the Caribbean and parts of the American South, coarse resin or a syrup made by simmering the resin in water is taken by the spoonful to quiet coughs and soothe sore throats; small lozenges made from the same resin or syrup are also sucked for throat comfort (Foster and Hobbs, 2002; British Herbal Pharmacopoeia, 1990). In Appalachian folk practice, a weak decoction of the inner bark has been used for coughs and bronchial complaints; the bark is boiled briefly and the liquid drunk warm (Moerman, 1998; Grieve, 1931). In parts of Mexico and Central America, the powdered gum has been infused in hot water to make a warm tea-like drink taken for colds and congestion (Mors and Rizzini, 1966). Some herbalists also blend a small pinch of liquidambar resin with other expectorant tinctures in a traditional 1:5 ethanolic preparation for short-term cough support (British Herbal Pharmacopoeia, 1990).
To prepare a 1:5 (w:v) liquidambar resin tincture, gently warm the resin with the alcohol to dissolve, shaking to re-suspend any crystals; if you must prepare a maceration without pre-dissolving, finely grate the resin and shake the jar thoroughly every day. The final tincture is light brown, balsamic, and slightly sweet; dose 10–15 drops in a little warm water up to three times a day for a few days during acute cough. Avoid during pregnancy and breastfeeding; stop if heartburn or mouth irritation develops; the tincture is flammable and not for children (British Herbal Pharmacopoeia, 1990; Foster and Hobbs, 2002).
The aromatic activity is generally linked to phenylpropanoids and phenylpropanoid esters (for example cinnamic acid derivatives) typical of liquidambar resins, together with essential oil constituents that contribute to the expectorant, balsamic odor and taste (British Herbal Pharmacopoeia, 1990; Williamson, 2003).
Liquidambar resin remains available from specialty herb suppliers for perfumery and traditional cough preparations, and several analyses continue to profile its phenylpropanoid profile; small-scale artisanal use for lozenges and teas continues in traditional contexts (Foster and Hobbs, 2002; Mors and Rizzini, 1966).
General Uses Top
Suggest a correction!Common products:
American sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua) provides lumber and veneer from its wood; industrial uses rely on kraft hardwood pulp and fiberboard derived from the wood’s fibers. The species is listed in genetic databases and used in botanical research.
Wood and fiber:
Lumber is employed for furniture, interior finish, flooring, and moldings; the wood yields veneer and is suitable for cross-laminated timber and glue-laminated products. Paper-grade pulp utilizes kraft cooking; fiberboard is produced as medium-density fiberboard (MDF) and hardboard. The species’ medium density (specific gravity ~0.52) and a mix of fibers suitable for papermaking enable these products.
Industrial and craft applications:
The wood is a recognized component in hardwood chips for kraft pulp used to manufacture printing papers, linerboard, and corrugated medium. Wood-based fiberboard and oriented strand board (OSB) utilize adhesive systems suited to hardwood species.
Scientific/model use:
The species is represented in the ForestGEO and i-Tree species databases for urban forestry planning and tree selection tools; it is a reference organism in floristic and forest ecology research programs.
Properties relevant to use:
Paper-grade pulp: lignin/cellulose ratio and hardwood fiber dimensions suitable for kraft pulping. Fiberboard: density in the medium range and fiber bonding characteristics compatible with MDF/hardboard production. Wood: typical hardwood density and grain pattern suitable for furniture and millwork applications.
Standards and regulation:
Timber grading for furniture and millwork follows North American hardwood rules; pulp and paper properties are governed by ISO/ASTM test methods for fiber analysis and pulp strength; engineered wood products (MDF, OSB) are covered by product standards including ASTM D 7907 (MDF) and product‑specific performance standards.
Sustainability and sourcing:
The species regenerates vigorously and is widespread in the eastern United States; it is commonly included in plantation and restoration programs, supporting a renewable supply for lumber and fiber products.
Synonyms Top
| Scientific name | Authority | First published in |
|---|---|---|
| Liquidambar gummifera | Salisb. | Prodr. Stirp. Chap. Allerton : 393 (1796) |
| Liquidambar macrophylla | Oerst. | Amér. Centr. : 16 (1863) |
| Liquidambar styraciflua var. mexicana | Oerst. | Amér. Centr. : 16 (1863) |
| Liquidambar barbata | Stokes | Bot. Mat. Med. 4: 332 (1812) |
| Liquidambar styraciflua f. pendula | Rehder | J. Arnold Arbor. 20: 93. 1939 |
| Liquidambar styraciflua f. rotundiloba | Rehder | J. Arnold Arbor. 12: 70, fig. 1931 |
| Liquidambar tuberculata | Silba | J. Int. Conifer Preserv. Soc. 22(1): 27. 2015 |
| Liquidambar styraciflua var. macrophylla | Nied. | Nat. Pflanzenfam. [Engler & Prantl] 3, Abt. 2a: 124, fig. 69H. 1891 |
Common names Top
Add a new one! Suggest a correction!| Language | Common/alternative name |
|---|---|
| English | hazel pine |
| English | sweet gum |
| English | bilsted |
| English | american storax |
| English | redgum |
| English | american sweetgum |
| English | alligatorwood |
| English | satin-walnut |
| English | star-leaved gum |
| English | sweetgum |
| Spanish | Árbol del Ámbar |
| Arabic | عنبر دماع أمريكي |
| Azerbaijani | qatranlı likvidambar |
| Catalan | arbre d'ambar |
| Catalan | liquidàmbar americà |
| Czech | ambroň styraxová |
| Czech | ambroň západní |
| Danish | almindelig ambratræ |
| Danish | almindeligt ambratræ (liquidambar styraciflua) |
| Danish | virginsk ambratræ |
| German | seesternbaum |
| German | amerikanischer amberbaum |
| Basque | likidanbar |
| Persian | شیرینژد آمریکایی |
| Finnish | lännenambrapuu |
| French | copalme d'amérique |
| French | copalme d’amérique |
| Hebrew | ליקוידמבר ליבני |
| Croatian | američki likvidambar |
| Hungarian | amerikai ámbrafa |
| Armenian | լիքվիդամբար խեժատու |
| Italian | storace americano |
| Japanese | アメリカフウ |
| Japanese | アメリカンレッドガム |
| Japanese | モミジバフウ |
| Macedonian | американски ликвидамбар |
| nah | ocotzocuahuitl |
| Norwegian Bokmål | ambratre |
| Dutch | storaxboom |
| Dutch | amberboom |
| Polish | ambrowiec balsamiczny |
| Polish | ambrowiec amerykański |
| Russian | Ликвидамбар смолоносный |
| Russian | Ликвидамбр смолоносный |
| Russian | Амбровое дерево |
| Serbian | Амерички ликвидамбар |
| Chinese | 北美枫香树 |
| Chinese | 北美枫香 |
| Chinese | 北美楓香樹 |
Germination/Propagation Top
Suggest a correction or add new data!
No germination or propagation data was added yet.
Distribution (via POWO/KEW) Top
Legend for the distribution data:
- Doubtful data
- Extinct
- Introduced
- Native
-
Europe click to expand
-
Middle Europe
- Belgium
-
Southeastern Europe
- Italy
-
Southwestern Europe
- Spain
-
Middle Europe
-
Northern America click to expand
-
Mexico
- Mexico Central
- Mexico Gulf
- Mexico Northeast
- Mexico Southeast
- Mexico Southwest
-
North-central U.S.A.
- Illinois
- Missouri
- Oklahoma
-
Northeastern U.S.A.
- Connecticut
- Indiana
- New York
- Pennsylvania
- West Virginia
-
South-central U.S.A.
- Texas
-
Southeastern U.S.A.
- Alabama
- Arkansas
- Florida
- Georgia
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maryland
- Mississippi
- North Carolina
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
-
Mexico
-
Southern America click to expand
-
Central America
- Belize
- El Salvador
- Guatemala
- Honduras
- Nicaragua
-
Central America
Links to other databases Top
Suggest others/fix!| Database | ID/link to page |
|---|---|
| World Flora Online | wfo-0000364015 |
| UNII | L674U3X6NP |
| Florida Plant Atlas | 3559 |
| Flora of Alabama | 2305 |
| Cornell Woody Plants | 138 |
| USDA Plants | LIST2 |
| UConn | 259 |
| Tropicos | 15100008 |
| INPN | 106361 |
| Flora of Italy | 8515 |
| KEW | urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:430718-1 |
| The Plant List | kew-2348877 |
| Missouri Botanical Garden | 281024 |
| PaleoBotany | 66765 |
| Open Tree Of Life | 62530 |
| Observations.org | 29064 |
| NCBI Taxonomy | 4400 |
| NBN Atlas | NBNSYS0500000235 |
| Nature Serve | 2.148447 |
| IUCN Red List | 33966 |
| IPNI | 430718-1 |
| iNaturalist | 49658 |
| GBIF | 3152824 |
| Freebase | /m/02f4d0 |
| FEIS | plants/tree/liqsty |
| EPPO | LIQST |
| EOL | 594658 |
| Elurikkus | 366173 |
| Calflora (Californian flora) | 8598 |
| USDA GRIN | 22379 |
| Wikipedia | Liquidambar_styraciflua |
| PFAF | Liquidambar styraciflua |
Genomes (via NCBI) Top
Below is displayed the reference genome only!
If you wish to browse all genomes for this plant click here.
If you wish to browse all genomes for this plant click here.
| Accession | Assembly | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Level | Submitter | Released | Coverage | Size | |
| GCA_041721615.1 | ASM4172161v1 | Chromosome | Chinese Academy Of Sciences | 2024-09-03 | 260.4 | 631.79 Mb |
Scientific Literature Top
Below are displayed the latest 15 articles published in PMC (PubMed Central®) and other sources (DOI number only)!
If you wish to see all the related articles click here.
If you wish to see all the related articles click here.
| Title | Authors | Publication | Released | IDs | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Climate change could negate U.S. forest ecosystem service benefits gained through reductions in nitrogen and sulfur deposition | Phelan JN, Van Houtven G, Clark CM, Buckley J, Cajka J, Hargrave A, Horn K, Thomas RQ, Sabo RD | Sci Rep | 10-May-2024 |
|
||||||
| Commodity risk assessment of Tilia cordata and Tilia platyphyllos plants from the UK | Bragard C, Baptista P, Chatzivassiliou E, Di Serio F, Jaques Miret JA, Justesen AF, MacLeod A, Magnusson CS, Milonas P, Navas‐Cortes JA, Parnell S, Potting R, Reignault PL, Stefani E, Thulke H, Van der Werf W, Vicent Civera A, Yuen J, Zappalà L, Battisti A, Mas H, Rigling D, Faccoli M, Mikulová A, Mosbach‐Schulz O, Stergulc F, Streissl F, Gonthier P | EFSA J | 03-May-2024 |
|
||||||
| What drives wild pig (Sus scrofa) movement in bottomland and upland forests? | Evans TS, Ellison N, Boudreau MR, Strickland BK, Street GM, Iglay RB | Mov Ecol | 25-Apr-2024 |
|
||||||
| Impacts of Invasive Plants on Native Vegetation Communities in Wetland and Stream Mitigation | DeBerry DA, Hunter DM | Biology (Basel) | 18-Apr-2024 |
|
||||||
| An inexpensive moist chamber culture technique for finding microbiota on live tree bark | Bordelon AP, Keller HW, Scarborough AR | Appl Plant Sci | 16-Apr-2024 |
|
||||||
| UV reflectance in crop remote sensing: Assessing the current state of knowledge and extending research with strawberry cultivars | Heath M, St-Onge D, Hausler R | PLoS One | 25-Mar-2024 |
|
||||||
| Waterlogging in soil restricts the growth of Gleditsia sinensis seedlings and inhibits the accumulation of lignans and phenolic acids in thorns | Luo ZQ, Shi XQ, Wang XY, Yang QL, Pan X, Pan WX, Luo CL, Yu SS, Zhou WW, Ren BR, Yi Y, Zhang XM | PeerJ | 22-Mar-2024 |
|
||||||
| First Record of Comparative Plastid Genome Analysis and Phylogenetic Relationships among Corylopsis Siebold & Zucc. (Hamamelidaceae) | Kim TH, Ha YH, Setoguchi H, Choi K, Kim SC, Kim HJ | Genes (Basel) | 20-Mar-2024 |
|
||||||
| Commodity risk assessment of Ligustrum ovalifolium and Ligustrum vulgare plants from the UK | Bragard C, Baptista P, Chatzivassiliou E, Di Serio F, Jaques Miret JA, Justesen AF, MacLeod A, Magnusson CS, Milonas P, Navas‐Cortes JA, Parnell S, Potting R, Reignault PL, Stefani E, Thulke H, Van der Werf W, Civera AV, Yuen J, Zappalà L, Battisti A, Mas H, Rigling D, Faccoli M, Mikulová A, Mosbach‐Schulz O, Stergulc F, Streissl F, Gonthier P | EFSA J | 07-Mar-2024 |
|
||||||
| Proper doses of brassinolide enhance somatic embryogenesis in different competent Korean pine cell lines during embryogenic callus differentiation | Nie S, Yan Y, Wang Y, Liu S, Guo W, Yang L, Shen H | Front Plant Sci | 23-Jan-2024 |
|
||||||
| Critical Review on the Use of Extractives of Naturally Durable Woods as Natural Wood Protectants | Kirker GT, Hassan B, Mankowski ME, Eller FJ | Insects | 18-Jan-2024 |
|
||||||
| The WOX Genes from the Intermediate Clade: Influence on the Somatic Embryogenesis in Medicago truncatula | Yakovleva DV, Efremova EP, Smirnov KV, Simonova VY, Konstantinov ZS, Tvorogova VE, Lutova LA | Plants (Basel) | 13-Jan-2024 |
|
||||||
| Commodity risk assessment of Corylus avellana plants from the UK | Bragard C, Baptista P, Chatzivassiliou E, Di Serio F, Jaques Miret JA, Justesen AF, MacLeod A, Magnusson CS, Milonas P, Navas‐Cortes JA, Parnell S, Potting R, Reignault PL, Stefani E, Thulke H, Van der Werf W, Civera AV, Yuen J, Zappalà L, Battisti A, Mas H, Rigling D, Faccoli M, Mikulová A, Mosbach‐Schulz O, Stergulc F, Streissl F, Gonthier P | EFSA J | 12-Jan-2024 |
|
||||||
| Bridging the gap: A new species of arboreal Abronia (Squamata: Anguidae) from the Northern Highlands of Chiapas, Mexico | Clause AG, Luna-Reyes R, Mendoza-Velázquez OM, Nieto-Montes de Oca A, Solano-Zavaleta I | PLoS One | 03-Jan-2024 |
|
||||||
| MtWOX2 and MtWOX9-1 Effects on the Embryogenic Callus Transcriptome in Medicago truncatula | Krasnoperova EY, Tvorogova VE, Smirnov KV, Efremova EP, Potsenkovskaia EA, Artemiuk AM, Konstantinov ZS, Simonova VY, Brynchikova AV, Yakovleva DV, Pavlova DB, Lutova LA | Plants (Basel) | 28-Dec-2023 |
|
Phytochemical Profile Top
Add a new one!
Below are displayed the proven (via scientific papers) natural compounds!
You can also contribute to this by clicking here.
You can also contribute to this by clicking here.
Collections Top
| In private collections | 0 |
| In public collections | 0 |