Educate Yourself About the Blackgum and Its Roosting Birds
Blackgum
Blackgum (Nyssa sylvatica) is a great choice for your backyard or bird feeding garden, and has its leaves turn scarlet, to alert ready and waiting birds to start distributing its purple fruit. Birds like the Eastern Bluebird will readily consume the nice fruit promptly. The Blackgum, when mature will stand out over the canopy of lowland forests with it’s up to 60ft in height.
It is well suited to grow in full sun to some sun, and like moist to dry conditions, it also does well in pH 5.5 to 6.5. To attract more birds, it might be a great idea to clean up leaves and twigs under the tree and have a small area for ground feeding birds, where they can feed on some extra goodies you put out. Another tree you might be interested in is the Oggeechee Tupelo (N. ogeche). This small tree or shrub is limited to alluvial soil along the rivers and coastal plains.
