The Sweet Gum Seed pod spikes are sharp and have given these trees a bad reputation for decorative landscaping. But the pods carry two kinds of seeds. The black ones with fins fly away and help propagate new trees. The light ones are infertile, but have medicinal properties. Sweet gum and star anise contain one of the necessary ingredients for Tamiflu. It keeps the virus trapped in the cell so it cannot reproduce, thus ending the illness sooner. The sap is less bitter than the Black Gum sap, so they call it “sweet”. The Cherokees made tea out of the bark and used it medicinally.
I see God’s handiwork in putting all kinds of help for us in our natural surroundings. He also put curiosity in us to see how to use what He provided.
Besides finding interesting shapes and textures and colors in everything around me, I enjoy discovering hidden treasures like this one.