Distribution
Stand of young Liquidambar trees showing typical autumn colour © Luis Fernández García, Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.5 Spain
Liquidambar styraciflua is common throughout the eastern United States and ranges from Connecticut in the north to Florida in the south, and from Texas in the west to Illinois in the east.
The species also ranges down through Central America, possibly as far south as El Salvador, but certainly as far as Guatemala, Belize and Mexico.
It is usually found growing at low elevations in the United States, but at higher altitudes in Central America, often in association with high level pine and oak forest.
Liquidambar styracifluais a fast growing tree most commonly found growing in moist alluvial soils and swampy woodlands. It can tolerate a wide range of soil types, but fails to thrive in shallow chalky soils.
