American sycamore (Platanus occidentalis), also known as American planetree, western plane, occidental plane, buttonwood, and water beech, is a species of Platanus native to the eastern and central United States, the mountains of northeastern Mexico, extreme southern Ontario, and possibly extreme southern Quebec. It is usually called sycamore in North America, a name which can refer to other types of tree in other parts of the world. The species epithet occidentalis is Latin for “western”, referring to the Western Hemisphere, because at the time when it was named by Carl Linnaeus, the only other species in the genus was P. orientalis (“eastern”), native to the Eastern Hemisphere.
If Trees Could Sing…
Click here to hear Kim Richey talk about one of her favorite trees. Video courtesy of The Nature Conservancy and Kim Richey.
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Photos taken at Old Town June 2022.