American Sycamore

More info for the term: tree

sycamore
American sycamore
plane tree
buttonball tree


TAXONOMY:
The scientific name for American sycamore is Platanus occidentalis L.
(Platanaceae) [13,35,48,50]. There are no accepted infrataxa.

The London plane tree (P. xacerifolia [Ait.] Willd.) is a hybrid of
Oriental plane (P. orientalis) and American sycamore and perhaps includes a
number of backcrosses [50,78].


LIFE FORM:
Tree

FEDERAL LEGAL STATUS:
No special status

OTHER STATUS:
American sycamore is listed by the State of Maine as a species of special
concern-possibly extirpated [26].






DISTRIBUTION AND OCCURRENCE
SPECIES: Platanus occidentalis
GENERAL DISTRIBUTION:
The range of American sycamore extends from southwestern Maine west to extreme
southern Ontario, southern Wisconsin, Iowa, and extreme eastern
Nebraska; south to south-central Texas; and east to northwestern Florida
and southeastern Georgia. It also occurs in the mountains of
northeastern Mexico [30,35,50]. American sycamore has become naturalized to some
extent from plantations outside of its native range, chiefly in southern
Maine, southern Michigan, southern Minnesota, and eastern and southern
Iowa [35].

American sycamore is listed by the State of Maine as a species of special
concern-possibly extirpated [26].

More info for the term: forest

The range of American sycamore extends from southwestern Maine west to extreme
southern Ontario, southern Wisconsin, Iowa, and extreme eastern
Nebraska; south to south-central Texas; and east to northwestern Florida
and southeastern Georgia. It also occurs in the mountains of
northeastern Mexico [30,35,50]. American sycamore has become naturalized to some
extent from plantations outside of its native range, chiefly in southern
Maine, southern Michigan, southern Minnesota, and eastern and southern
Iowa [35].



Distribution of American sycamore. 1971 USDA, Forest Service map digitized by Thompson and others [87].

More info for the terms: competition, prescribed fire, tree, vines

In the Southeast, the usual fire season is fall; fire years occur
when the usual summer drought extends into autumn and early winter.
Most fires are accidentally caused by humans [61].

Prescribed fire is not recommended for southeastern bottomland forests
in which American sycamore occurs; aside from damaging and killing trees, fire
reduces soil organic layers, leading to site degradation. Following
fire, weeds and vines flourish on exposed sites, increasing competition
with tree seedlings that may establish after fire [57,61].

American sycamore had a significantly lower proportion of its stem weight in bark
than any of the other species tested. In the soft hardwoods group (red
maple, sweetgum, American sycamore, and yellow-poplar [Liriodendron tulipifera]),
American sycamore had the highest average total-tree moisture content of any
species tested [20]. A formula to estimate recoverable heat energy in
wood or bark fuels is available [86].

More info for the terms: forest, natural

American sycamore is found in quantity only in bottomland forests, particularly
of elm-ash-cottonwood (Ulmus spp.-Fraxinus spp.-Populus deltoides) types
as defined by Shifley and others [66], and cottonwood-willow (Salix
spp.) types. It usually occurs singly or in small groups [78].
American sycamore is found occasionally along intermittent streams within upland
stands of oak-hickory (Quercus spp.-Carya spp.) communities. It is a
major pioneer species in the floodplains of large rivers [74]. In the
Southeast pure stands of 40 to 100 acres (16-40 ha) are sometimes
formed; it rarely forms extensive pure stands in the northern parts of
its range [78]. In the northern states American sycamore is rarely the dominant
species; it increases (replacing silver maple [Acer saccharinum]) with
decreasing latitude [27].

American sycamore is listed as a dominant or indicator species in the following
publications:

1) The natural forests of Maryland: an explanation of the vegetation map
of Maryland [14]
2) The natural communities of South Carolina [58]
3) Land Classification in the Blue Ridge province: state-of-the-science
report [55]
4) Forest management of floodplain sites in the northeastern United
States [56]
5) Management of bottomland hardwoods [61]
6) Ecological communities of New York State [63]
7) Classification and evaluation of forest sites on the northern Cumberland
Plateau [68]
8) Classification and evaluation of forest sites on the Natchez Trace State
Forest, State Resort Park, and Wildlife Management Area in west
Tennessee [69]

More info for the term: tree

Tree

More info for the terms: cover, herb, herbaceous, natural, seed, shrub

American sycamore is a valuable timber species that can be regenerated from
natural seed sources, by planting, or by coppice systems.

Seed: American sycamore invades bottomland old fields when adequate seed
sources are present [3,59]. It often seeds in on clearcuts; good
initial establishment from natural seed sources requires some site
preparation [79]. Its potential for establishment from direct seeding
is unknown [3].

Plantation: American sycamore usually shows good initial capture of planting
sites [49]. American sycamores interplanted with herbaceous legumes were larger
than control plants 6 years after legume establishment [36]. On mined
sites interplanting American sycamore with the nitrogen-fixing European black
alder (Alnus glutinosa) doubled American sycamore height and diameter growth over
that of control plants [77]. Site characteristics, rather than site
preparation method, had the most pronounced effect on American sycamore height
growth [24]. However, Hunt and Cleveland [43] reported American sycamore growing
on disc-cultivated sites showed better growth than with other
treatments. American sycamore does not establish well in dense herb or shrub
cover [77]. Clatterbuck and Burkhardt [21] reported on the effects of
various mixtures and spacings for cherrybark oak (Quercus falcata) and
American sycamore plantations in Arkansas.

Coppice: For short-rotation intensive culture systems, American sycamore yield
is influenced by site, fertilizer, spacing, and rotation [80]. American sycamore
has good coppice regeneration potential although it may not be
sustainable over many rotations. Geyer [33] reported that American sycamore died
after two coppice harvests in Kansas. A high percentage of stumps
sprout, regardless of stump size or time of harvest. However, dormant
season cuts produce larger and heavier sprout clumps than cuts during
the growing season [5,78].

Insects and Diseases: Natural stands of American sycamore have few lethal
diseases [22]; disease problems occur mostly in plantations. Important
diseases include anthracnose and eastern mistletoe (Phoradendron spp.)
[78]. There have been some reports of a potentially serious disease of
American sycamore in Illinois and adjacent states, and possibly spreading to
Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama. This disease has been
attributed to attacks by various organisms on environmentally stressed
trees; it is not attributed to a single cause [22]. There are no
insects of economic importance in natural stands, although problems with
insects occur in landscaping trees [78].

Large American sycamores sometimes develop wind shake, a wood defect that reduces
its economic value [78]. American sycamore is susceptible to ice damage
[78]; of six trees examined after an ice/sleet storm in Missouri and
Illinois, only one escaped major damage [23].

Under powerlines, American sycamore regrowth was appreciably reduced with
pressure-injected malic hydrazide or daminozide [12].

More info on this topic.

More info for the term: tree

American sycamore flowers appear in May in the northern parts of its range, and
as early as late March in the South. Late spring frosts will kill
flowers, leaves, and twigs [78]. The fruits ripen from September to
October or November, and usually remain on the tree over winter,
breaking up or falling off the following spring from February through
April [9,78].

More info for the terms: root sucker, secondary colonizer

Tree with adventitious-bud root crown/soboliferous species root sucker
Secondary colonizer - off-site seed

More info for the term: tree

The scientific name for American sycamore is Platanus occidentalis L.
(Platanaceae) [13,35,48,50]. There are no accepted infrataxa.

The London plane tree (P. xacerifolia [Ait.] Willd.) is a hybrid of
Oriental plane (P. orientalis) and American sycamore and perhaps includes a
number of backcrosses [50,78].