According to Steve Nix, The Arbor Day Journal has reported that the sweetgum tree was the first choice for planting at the 9/11 Memorial in New York. Yet in his own "Trees You Simply Can't Stand" poll, sweetgum trees earned the dubious distinction of finishing near the top of the list, because their fruit can be rather messy in a yard. Oh well, there's no accounting for tastes! Simply grow Liquidambar styraciflua 'Rotundiloba,' a fruitless sweetgum tree, to address the issue of messiness.

_{Photo ©2005 David Beaulieu (licensed to About, Inc.)}