- 1). Estimate the height of the tree and the diameter of the tree at its lowest branches, also known as the spread. Sycamores grow as tall as 80 to 100 feet with a spread of over 60 feet.
- 2). Determine the location and conditions in which the specimen tree is growing. Sycamores are found in all states east of the Great Plains with the exception of Minnesota. The tree does well in wet soil conditions, but not in standing water as would be found in swamps or sloughs. Sycamores often grow along the banks of rivers, streams, ponds and lakes.
- 3). Examine the bark. Sycamores have bark that is thin and typically creamy-white to brownish and mottled. In winter, the bark is white. This feature makes sycamores stand out among other trees when leaves have fallen. The bark is plate-like and, where plates fall off, the inner bark appears whitish-green.
- 4). Study a tree leaf. Those of a sycamore are large (5 to 6 inches across), broad and appear hand-like with three to five lobes. Valleys between lobes are shallow, and the leaves vary with respect to the number and size of teeth. Sycamore leaves are light green on top with fine hairs following veins on the underside. The leaves' bases are flat or heart-shaped. In autumn, leaves turn red or brown.
- 5). Look for fruit that is about an inch in diameter and dangling from a stalk about 3 to 6 inches long. Native trees have a single fruit on a stalk, but nonnative species often have two or three fruits per stalk. The fruit is a fluffy sphere, yellowish-brown in color. The fruit is the reason a sycamore is sometimes called buttonwood or buttonball tree.
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