She has written articles for the Oregon Landscape Contractors Association.

Jul 21, Each bears spiky green fruits that age to brown when mature. These ball-shaped fruits are about 1 inch across and break apart when mature, dispersing silky seeds. Both English (Juglans regia) and black walnuts (Juglans nigra), hardy in USDA zones. Sep 28, The tree produces spiny green fruits about the size of a golf ball, which turn brown and drop off the tree over an extended period beginning in fall and continuing over the winter.

The spiny fruit may be used in craft projects or as mulch to deter rabbits in the garden.

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Jun 29, By mid-fall, the balls are dead and seedless. Just like leaves, they must fall, so the tree can prep for new growth. The only difference is sweetgum balls drop all fall and winter. Are sweetgum tree balls edible?

Other plants don't grow well under walnuts due to chemicals emitted by the roots and litter.

While they’re not edible, the balls can double as spiky mulch to keep animals away from young plants. You can even get creative and use them to make holiday trinkets or decorative balls for. May 20, Sweetgum tree balls (gumballs) are green when immature (left) and dark brown when mature (right) Sweetgum trees are known for their balls, also called gumballs, sweetgum fruits, or capsules.

The spiky gumballs hang in clusters. The hard, brown, woody sweetgum balls measure between 1” and 3” ( – cm) and contain numerous seeds.