American Sycamore Tree Information
No hardwood tree in the United States is more massive than the American sycamore, and the tree grows very rapidly. The sycamore features a unique bark, large leaves and distinct fruit; the sycamore is an important tree within the ecosystems in which it grows. Wildlife will use the tree as a home and eat the seeds, while the wood of the American sycamore is suitable for items such as butcher block furniture and paper pulp.
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Size
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The "National Audubon Society Field Guide to Trees" says that the American sycamore grows between 60 and 100 feet on average but that larger specimens are common. The Virginia Department of Forestry site states that sycamores exist that are as tall as 150 feet, and some possess a trunk diameter of more than 10 feet, although the average sycamore is two to three feet wide at its base.
Foliage
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The leaves of sycamore are variable in size and shape, with the average leaf between 4 and 8 inches long and almost as wide. The leaves may have multiple lobes and resemble large maple leaves in some instances. The leaves are bright green on the top but a paler shade of green underneath, and the foliage will turn brownish in the fall. Many obvious veins branch off from one central point located at the base of the leaf, going throughout the entire leaf.
Bark
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Sycamore bark gives the tree its best feature in terms of landscaping assets, as the bark appears mottled and takes on a grayish-white color on older trees. The young sycamore will have smooth, thin bark, but once the tree gets to about four years old, the bark begins to become flaky near the bottom of the trunk. On the upper trunk and branches, the bark will peel off and reveal small patches of gray, green, tan and white. The effect makes the bark look like camouflage.
Buttonballs
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The fruit of the sycamore takes the shape of a ball composed of tightly packed clusters of seeds. These hanging balls give the sycamore tree the nickname of "buttonball tree," and they often remain on the tree well into the late winter. The balls are an inch wide and tan in color.
Geography
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American sycamore is native from southern New England westward through the southern half of New York State and into the Great Lakes States. The tree grows southward from Iowa through eastern parts of Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas. Sycamore exists on the Gulf Coast to Florida's Panhandle but does not grow anywhere else in Florida, according to the University of Connecticut Plant Database website. From Florida, the tree grows northward all through states like Georgia, the Carolinas, Virginia, Maryland, Delaware and New Jersey.
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References
- Photo Credit Sycamore Bark image by Gary Chorpenning from Fotolia.com
