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Sycamore Maple Origin

The sycamore maple (Acer pseudoplatanus) belongs to the maple genus and is widespread in Europe. It grows as a deciduous tree and reaches a height of up to 40 m. It can live for 600 years.
It is particularly common in the middle to higher elevations of the southern and central European mountains. In popular belief, the maple tree stood for peace, serenity and harmony. It could comfort depressed people, fulfill hopes and dreams and drive away evil spirits.
The maple tree is on a list of the most important medicinal plants written by Egyptian priests around 1600 BC.

The sycamore maple only begins to bloom when it is between 25 and 40 years old. The flowering period is in April to May, together with the leaf shoots or shortly afterwards. The hermaphrodite flowers hang closely together on 6 to 15 cm long, overhanging panicles. They are yellow-green, five-petaled, radially symmetrical with a double perianth.
The five lobed leaves are arranged opposite each other, about 20 cm long and 10 to 15 cm wide. The upper side of the leaf is dark green and the underside is light grey-green to purple. In autumn the leaves turn golden yellow and reddish at higher altitudes.
The fruits are formed in the form of two-part wing nuts and are ripe from September to October. Each part fruit is about 3,5 to 4,5 cm long and up to 15 mm wide. They have a wing and contain a small spherical nut.

Sycamore care and location

A sunny to partially shaded location with moist, calcareous soil is ideal for planting the sycamore maple. The trees are relatively undemanding but do not tolerate waterlogging.

Pruning sycamore maple

The sycamore maple is easy to care for and regular pruning is not necessary. Pruning does not encourage flowers, growth or colorful foliage. If pruning is necessary, late summer is the right time. If pruned in winter, the sycamore maple bleeds heavily. A lot of sap containing nutrients and storage substances comes out of the cut areas, which serves to supply the plant. 

Water the sycamore maple!

The sycamore maple has deep roots and should be watered rarely but intensively and thoroughly. The sycamore maple originally comes from the mountains and thrives in humid climates. It cannot tolerate prolonged water shortages, so the soil should never dry out completely, otherwise the fine roots will die.

Climate change has many effects on nature and many trees suffer from the hot and dry periods.

Depending on the location and the climatic situation, more frequent watering may be necessary than in previous years.

Young sycamore trees need to be watered regularly to help them take root. Fully grown trees usually do not need to be watered, but it is recommended to water them at least once a week during dry periods.
Signs of drought stress are limp, drooping leaves, weak young branches, discolored or drying leaves. When these signs appear, it is time to water the tree.
The water requirement of a sycamore maple depends on several factors, such as the length of the dry period and the condition of the tree. As a general rule, young trees require 75 to 100 liters and older trees 150 to 200 liters per watering.
If too much water lands on the tree at once, there is a risk that the moisture will evaporate or run off before it can reach the roots. For this reason, you can tree bath watering bags more efficient watering and even saves water.
Two small holes in the bottom of the watering bags release water evenly into the soil over several hours as drip irrigation. This means that the water is absorbed by the surrounding soil and roots better than with conventional watering.
Attaching and filling the water bags is easy and uncomplicated.
The bag is placed around the tree trunk like a jacket and closed with a zip. The next step is to fill the bag with around 10 to 15 liters of water, shake it briefly so that the openings are in the right position and then let it fill up. For trees with larger trunk diameters, several bags can also be connected with a zip.

Do you have to fertilize the sycamore maple?

A mulch layer of bark compost in the root area is helpful to keep the moisture in the soil. The best time to Fertilize is in autumn and spring. Compost or plant manure is suitable for this.

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