Nyssa sylvatica fine and abundant and lies horizontally so that the foliage arrangement is not unlike that of the beech "(Fagus)". Its often spectacular autumnal coloring, with intense reds to purples, is highly valued in landscape settings. It is the most fiery and brilliant of the 'brilliant group' that includes maple, dogwood, sassafras, and sweet gum, as well as various species of tupelo. In the UK the cultivar ‘Wisley Bonfire’ has gained the Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit. "Nyssa sylvatica" is a major source of wild honey in many areas within its range. Hollow sections of black gum trunks were
Parornix fagivora continues living freely under a folded leaf margin or leaf tip. Parornix fagivora Parornix fagivora is a moth of the Gracillariidae family. It is found from Sweden to the Pyrenees, Italy and Albania and from Great Britain to southern Russia. The wingspan is 11–14 mm. The larvae feed on "Fagus sylvatica", including subspecies "Fagus sylvatica orientalis". They mine the leaves of their host plant. The mine starts as a small lower-surface epidermal corridor with reddish brown frass. Later, it becomes a small rectangular full depth blotch with black frass. The larva deposits only little silk in the mine, that remains