Platanus occidentalis Bonsai Seeds - American Sycamore, American Plane Tree or Buttonwood Seeds

Platanus occidentalis Bonsai Seeds

Common Names: American sycamore Tree, American Plane Tree or Buttonwood Tree Seeds

An American sycamore tree is easily recognized by its mottled exfoliating bark. The bark of all trees has to yield to a growing trunk; in the case of trees such as the Silver Maple and the Shagbark Hickory the process is not hidden, but the Sycamore shows the process of exfoliation more openly than any other tree.

The bark of the trunk and larger limbs flakes off in great irregular masses, leaving the surface mottled, and greenish-white, gray and brown. Sometimes the smaller limbs look as if whitewashed.

The explanation is found in the rigid texture of the bark tissue, which lacks the elasticity common to the bark of other trees, so it is incapable of stretching to accommodate the growth of the wood underneath and the tree sloughs it off.

A sycamore can grow to massive proportions, typically reaching up to 30 to 40 meters high and 1.5 to 2 meters in diameter when grown in deep soils. The largest of the species have been measured to 51 meters, and nearly 4 meters in diameter. Historical specimens over 5 meters thick have been reported.

The sycamore is able to endure a big city environment and has been extensively planted as a shade tree. It bears transplanting well and grows rapidly.