Sweetgum seed pods are hated or loved, depending on your point of view.
On Throw Back Thursday read about their pros and cons in this vintage post: Gumballs
(photo by Dianne Machesney)
Sweetgum Balls
Outside My Window
A Blog of Birds & Nature with Kate St. John
Growing up in Virginia, I liked gumballs, and our backyard was full of them. My Dad one time paid me to collect them in a basket before he mowed the lawn. I felt rich!
In years past, when we have a wet summer, I’ve had torake them into the street and use a snow shovel to scoop them up. They are great for keeping rabbits away from plants. Just make a moat of gumballs.
Are there sweetgum trees in Western Pennsylvania? I don’t think I’ve ever seen one.
What I HAVE seen are the pods of Chinese Chestnuts (not buckeyes, they are edible relatives of the American Chestnut) which I planted in my yard many years ago. Big mistake. The squirrels, the rabbits and the deer love the nuts, which is good, but the pods are spiky and nasty. My husband complains about having to rake them up every fall. I don’t think that’s actually necessary. There is one tree way over in the corner that he doesn’t rake. The pods seem to disappear during the winter.