Leaves are alternate, palmately lobed, and star-shaped.
Flowers are usually monoecious.
Key to Liquidambar Species Leaves are palmately veined with big, star-shaped leaves. Buds are darker than the twigs. The sweetgum, also called redgum and liquidambar, is a handsome tree and native locally in southern Ohio. The sweetgum grows naturally from Connecticut to the southern United States. Another population occurs in Guatemala.