California sycamore Platanaceae Platanus racemosa

Leaf:Alternate, simple, deciduous, 5 to 10 inches long, palmately lobed (usually 3-5 lobes) with lobes about half as long as the leaf; hairy when young; petioles are long, swollen at their base, and hairy.
Flower:Species is monoecious but imperfect, male and female flowers are tiny and borne in dense, round heads (like fuzzy marbles on a string).
Fruit:Golf ball sized heads of tufted achenes; 3 to 7 hang on a long pendulous stalk designed to fracture at maturity; seeds are wind dispersed.
Twig:Slender and covered with numerous fine hairs when young; becoming smooth and reddish brown with age. Terminal buds absent; lateral buds conical.
Bark:The most striking feature of this tree. Young greenish-gray bark exfoliates leaving almost pure white inner bark; older bark is thicker (1 to 3 inches), furrowed, and dark brown.
Form:A medium to tall tree (40 to 100 feet tall) that sometimes reaches 11 feet in diameter. Crown is open and rounded.

leaf flower fruit twig bark form map

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