Common Name: Formosan Gum

General Information

Liquidambar formosana is a deciduous tree growing around 12 metres tall. The crown is wide and pyramidal shaped when young, but eventually grows to a rounded or irregular form[]. The straight, cylindrical bole can be up to 1.5 metres in diameter[].
The tree is harvested from the wild for local medicinal use, for its resin and its timber. It can be grown as a pioneer species to reintroduce woodland, and is also planted as an ornamental[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

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Range

E. Asia - Central and southern China from Taiwan to south-west Sichuan; Vietnam.

Habitat

A very wide range, especially in the warm temperate zones, growing in woodland and in open country[]. Moist forests; at elevations up to 2,500 metres in the south of its range[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Deciduous Tree
Height	12.00 m
Pollinators	Bees
Cultivation Status	Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

Liquidambar formosana is a plant of moist areas in the subtropics to tropics and is not generally very frost-tolerant. The Monticola group, which comes from western Hubei and north-eastern Sichuan, is the hardiest form and can tolerate temperatures lower than -5°c when dormant[, ]. Young plants are susceptible to frost damage and should be protected for their first few years[].
Prefers a moist but not swampy loam in a sunny sheltered position[, ]. Plants are shade-tolerant when young, but require a sunny position as they get older[]. Requires a deep fertile soil[]. Prefers a neutral to acid soil, growing poorly on shallow soils overlying chalk[].
Trees respond very well to coppicing[].
The tree has large, aggressive roots which can lift paving stones[].
This species resents root disturbance, young plants should be pot-grown and be placed in their permanent positions as soon as possible[].

Edible Uses

The leaves are used as a vegetable[].

Medicinal

The leaves are used in the treatment of cancerous growths[].

The stem is anodyne, antiphlogistic, astringent, balsamic and haemostatic[, ].

The stem bark is used in the treatment of fluxes and skin diseases[].

The fruits are antirheumatic, diuretic and galactagogue[]. They are used in the treatment of arthritis, lumbago, oedema, oliguria, decreased milk production and skin diseases[, ].

The root is used in the treatment of cancerous growths[].

The resin from the stems is used to treat bleeding boils, carbuncles, toothache and tuberculosis[]. It is mixed with Rhamnus crenata fruits and used as a suppository for constipation[].

Agroforestry Uses:

Liquidambar formosana is a fast-growing, pioneer species - it is often one of the first trees to appear in open places after forest fires or other disturbances in the forest[].
The plant has a wide-ranging, aggressive root system and, when growing in areas polluted by heavy metals it has been shown to concentrate various of these metals in its tissues - especially zinc. It has a potential for use in phytoremediation projects, either as a means of removing these metals or as a means of locking them up and helping to restore the fertility of the soil[].

Other Uses

An aromatic resin is obtained from the trunk of this tree[]. It forms in cavities of the bark and is harvested in autumn. It is used as a raw material for the perfume and pharmaceutical industry and in the manufacture of varnish and incense[]. It is used medicinally[].

The wood is light, but strong after being processed[]. It is used for construction, railway sleepers, boat- and ship-building, furniture and tea chests for higher grade teas[, , , ].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in the autumn in a cold frame. Harvest the seed capsules at the end of early autumn or late autumn, dry in a warm place and extract the seed by shaking the capsule. Stored seed requires 1 - 3 months stratification and sometimes takes 2 years to germinate. Sow it as early in the year as possible. Germination rates are often poor. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in a cold frame or greenhouse for their first winter. Since they resent root disturbance, it is best to plant them out into their permanent positions in early summer of their second year and give them some protection from cold for their first winter outdoors[].
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, mid summer in a frame.
Suckers in early spring.
Layering in autumn. Takes 12 months.