Sycamore (Acer pseudoplatanus): what the forestry bodies record

This page reports what forestry bodies say about one tree. It does not identify trees from descriptions or photos and does not say what should be done with any tree. Each fact names its source, all read on October 9, 2026. The family overview is tree species in the agency records, which covers North American maples such as red maple and sugar maple.

At a glance

Item	What the source records
Scientific name and family	Acer pseudoplatanus, family Sapindaceae (Woodland Trust)
Origin in Britain	Non-native (Woodland Trust); an early introduction, widely naturalised (Forest Research)
Height	To 30 m or more (Forest Research); up to 35 m (Woodland Trust)
Life span	Up to 400 years; 200 to 400 years in the wild, and some cultivated specimens over 500 years (Woodland Trust)
Rainfall and exposure	More than 600 mm of rain preferred; moderate exposure (Forest Research key properties)

Range and introduction

Forest Research gives the native range as the mountainous areas of central, eastern and southern Europe, the Caucasus and northern Asia Minor. EUFORGEN, the European forest genetic resources programme, says the tree is native to central Europe and western Asia and has naturalised far beyond that range, for example in Sweden and Britain, through active introduction by humans and frequent use in urban landscaping. It adds that its partial self-compatibility, wide adaptation, short generation time and regular production of widely dispersed seed can make it invasive, and that some efforts have been made to eradicate it. On when it reached Britain, Forest Research says discussion is ongoing, from the mid 1500s or possibly earlier. The Woodland Trust says it is thought to have been introduced by the Romans, though other reports give the Tudor era, the 1500s, with more widespread planting in the 1700s and the earliest reports of naturalising in the mid 1800s.

Site and soil

Forest Research says sycamore grows on a wide range of soils but does best on deep, fresh to moist, free-draining soils of medium to rich nutrient status with a pH of 5.5 to 7.5. It says the tree is not suited to heavy clays and poor sandy soils, does not tolerate waterlogging and flooding, and is drought sensitive. It is tolerant of exposure but best suited to sheltered sites, cold hardy, and tolerant of salt spray and air pollution, which the entry ties to suitability across all climatic regions of Britain from sea level to over 500 m. EUFORGEN says it thrives on calcareous and nutrient-rich soils, needs a good water supply and avoids wet soils. Forest Research says it is shade tolerant when young and a light demander by pole stage, with seed bearing from between ages 25 and 30 and mast years on a two to three year cycle.

Look

The Woodland Trust describes dark pink-grey bark, smooth when young and cracked into small plates with age, pink-brown hairless twigs, and palmate leaves of 7 to 16 cm with five lobes and red leaf stalks on young trees. It names hairy leaf veins on the underside as a feature, and V-shaped winged fruits called samaras, with a narrower angle than those of field maple and Norway maple.

Wildlife and wood

The Woodland Trust says the leaves feed the caterpillars of the sycamore moth, plumed prominent and maple prominent, the seeds feed birds such as greenfinch and goldfinch, and the flowers give bees pollen and nectar. For timber, it says the wood is hard, strong, pale cream and fine grained, used for furniture and kitchenware because it does not taint or stain food. EUFORGEN lists furniture and joinery, flooring, paper, musical instruments and firewood. The Woodland Trust says mature trees are tolerant of wind and pollution and are planted as street trees and coastal windbreaks.

Pests and diseases the sources name

Forest Research says leaf spot and tar spot frequently affect sycamore but are conspicuous and relatively unimportant, and that sooty bark, Phytophthora and Verticillium wilt are potentially more damaging. It says sooty bark disease becomes evident after episodes of prolonged hot weather, causing partial or total wilting of the crown and mortality. The Woodland Trust says that disease can kill the tree and can also lead to maple bark disease in humans. Profiles on this site are sooty bark disease and Verticillium wilt.

On insects, Forest Research calls the scale Pulvinaria regalis, the horse chestnut scale, one of the most conspicuous pests of sycamore, though generally a problem of trees under stress from lack of water or nutrients. The Woodland Trust says it shows as fluffy white spots on the trunk and branches in summer. Forest Research records bark stripping by grey squirrels and says the grey squirrel has a marked preference for sycamore over most other broadleaves and can severely damage a crop. Forest Research ends the entry with a TreeAlert report link for suspected cases.

Text on Forest Research is adapted from its tree species database entry and contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.