Common Name: Golden Sun Sweet Gum TreeLatin Name: Liquidambar styraciflua ‘Golden Sun’Soil: moist, well-drained, acidic to neutral soil.Position: Full sunHardiness: Fully hardyHeight and spread in 20 years: 6m/3mSpecial features: Golden yellow new branches, adding winter interest The ‘Golden Sun’ is aptly named as it adds a real burst of sunshine to a winter garden: its new branches are golden yellow in colour, so they glow in a sleeping winter garden. This Sweet Gum also boasts a colourful show of foliage: new leaves emerge pale yellow, then mature to a steady green for summer and finally they turn to deep ruby red tones in autumn. The leaves are palmate, with 5 or 7 lobes, and tend to be some of the last leaves to fall before winter. This beautiful tree is more compact than some forms of Liquidambar and is therefore perfect for the smaller garden. It is fairly upright in habit and grows to have a dense, pyramidal shape. This is a delightful lawn specimen and looks great on its own, but if you want a planting partner then then something with a bold floral display, like the Syringa Vulgaris Katherine Havemeyer, looks great next to the ever-changing foliage of the ‘Golden Sun’.