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Scientific Name:
Acer pseudoplatanus
Pronunciation:
AY-sur soo-doe-PLAT-uh-nus
Common Name:
sycamore maple
Family Name:
Sapindaceae
Plant Type:
Tree - deciduous
Key ID Features:
Leaves opposite, palmate with 3-5 acute-tipped serrate-crenate lobes, obovate-orbicular, most 9-15cm long x 7-15cm wide, greenish-white undersides; florets open after leaves, in pendulous thyrse 7-11cm long; schizocarps 3-4cm wide, thick edge of wings at wings at 70-90 degree angle (horse shoe shaped when immature), samaras 3-5cm long (sometimes 3 per schizocarp). Winter ID: twigs round, brown; lenticels whitish; buds opposite, green, broadly ovoid, 6-8 scales, leaf scars crescent shaped with 3 large round bundle scars.

Habit:
Upright
Form:
Oval - vertical, Round
Texture:
Coarse
Mature Height:
15 - 22m
Mature Spread:
15 - 25m
Growth Rate:
Moderate
Origin:
Central / west Asia, Europe
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 5: (-29 to -23 °C)
Exposure:
Full sun, Part sun/part shade
Soil/Growing Medium:
Well-drained
Water Use:
Moderate
Landscape Uses:
Shade tree, Street (boulevard tree)
Additional Info:
Google. Cultivars shown or on campus may include A. 'Atropurpureum' (purple undersides), A. 'Brilliantissimum' (new leaves bright shrimp-pink), A. 'Erythrocarpum' (samaras pink-red), A. 'Leopoldii' (light green and variegated).

Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Simple, Lobed
Arrangement:
Opposite
Texture/Venation:
Soft flexible, Palmate venation
Surfaces:
Glabrous
Colour in Summer:
Dark-green, A. 'Leopoldii' and 'Esk Sunset' are variegated
Colour in Fall:
Yellow, Brown
Shapes:
Obovate, Orbicular
Apices:
Acuminate, Acute
Bases:
Cordate
Margins:
Crenate, Serrate

Inflorescence Type:
Thyrse, Panicle-like
Flower Morphology:
Monoecious plant
Number Of Petals:
5
Corolla Shape:
Rotate/stellate
Ovary Position:
Superior
Colour (petals):
Showy, Yellow
Flower Scent:
Fragrant
Flower Time at Peak:
Apr, May
Additional Info:
Pendulous; the florets are sometimes bisexual

Fruit Type:
Samara, Schizocarp
Fruit Colour:
Brown
Fruiting Time:
Jun, Jul
Additional Info:
Schizocarps split into samara-like mericarps after dispersal

Bark Morphology:
Deeply fissured
Bark or Stem Colour:
Grey, Brown
Leaf Bud Type:
Ovoid
Leaf Scar Shape:
Crescent shaped
Propagation:
Seed
Pest Susceptibility:
Aphids or adelgids, Canker or sap rot, Mites (Pest resistant, Disease resistant)
Specific Pests:

Course(s):
  • not used (on campus)
Location(s):
  • (JPL)  Juglans PLanting
  • (TFL)  Turf Field Lab
  • (TFLE)  Turf Field Lab East : q.2 + 1 cv. Atropurpureum
  • (TKC)  TamaracK Courtyard
Location Map