Platanus occidentalis

Scientific Name: Platanus occidentalis

Common Name: sycamore

Native Range: Southeastern United States

Zone: 4 to 9

Plant type & Form: Deciduous tree with a single massive trunk and an open, widely spreading crown

Height: 75.00 to 100.00 feet

Spread: 75.00 to 100.00 feet

Bloom Time: April

Bloom Description: Red (female) and yellow (male)

Flower: Insignificant

Fruit: Singular, 1″, ball-like seed hangs from long stalks

Leaf: Alternately attached, triangular leaf with 3-5 shallow pointed lobes (4-8″) and a wavy coarse-toothed margin, resembles a maple leaf

Sun: Full sun

Water: Medium to wet

Soil type & pH: Alkaline, wet soil

Maintenance: High – susceptible to pests and disease, lots of cleanup from falling debris

Suggested Use: Shade tree, rain garden

Tolerates: Deer, wet soil, Black Walnut, air pollution

Notes: The sycamore is traditionally hollowed-out to build canoes by native peoples

Identification notes: The sycamore tree has a unique exfoliating bark that reveals a bone-white inner bark. Look for nearly white bark, especially at the top of the tree. Although similar, the London planetree has more of a yellow-cream inner bark. The sycamore has a very large trunk that is often larger than other trees in Ohio. This tree grows well in wet soils and can be found in bottomlands and along streams.