Concerns With Sweet Gum Tree?

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I have what I believe is a sweet gum tree in the front yard. It is July and all of the leaves have turned red. Photo of tree with red leaves

I know this is normal for the fall, but as I said it is July. There is noticeable moss on the bark and a light green flaking moss (?) on most of the branches and it appears to be missing spots of bark on many of the branches. Closeup of gray lichen

While taking the pictures I also noticed a lot of ant activity and some small holes around the trunk. Is this tree dying? Is there anything I can do? I have included a few pictures. One photo is the tree turning red, one is a look at one of the branches and the last is a closeup of the "mildew" or moss? upward shot of tree branch, too far away to see much. Some bark missing.

upward shot of tree branch, too far away to see much. Some bark missing.

Thanks for the input!

By Ryan

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Linda

July 11, 20110 found this helpful

Best Answer

We finally got rid of the sweet gum tree in our yard. I think it was about 30 years old and such a pain in the. My husband hated it from day one (we've been in the house 2 years now) and finally paid to have it cut down. It was a beautiful shade tree but the sweet gum balls and leaves were just too much! I hope you can save your tree if you want to, but I can't imagine wanting to. Google sweet gum tree and see what people say about this particular pain!

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