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Tree that sheds bark and turns white


Sycamores | Illinois Extension | UIUC

Ryan Pankau

Our native sycamore tree (Platanus occidentalis) is known for its extraordinary exfoliating bark which peels off to expose the beautiful creamy white and greenish colors beneath creating a camouflage-like appearance.  This summer many area sycamores are shedding bark at alarming rates which has prompted folks to question the health of their trees.

In most cases, shedding bark on a sycamore is no cause for concern.  In fact, it may actually be a sign that the tree is extremely healthy and growing rapidly.  To better comprehend exfoliating bark, it helps to understand the fundamentals of woody stem growth.  We all know that trees produce annual rings and by counting the rings you can estimate the age of a tree.  So, why does tree growth occur in concentric rings?

Just beneath the bark of every tree is a layer of cells called the cambium.  Every year this specialized tissue gives rise to xylem cells on the inside and phloem cells on the outside, creating the growth rings we count.   Xylem tissue transports water and nutrients from the roots to the growing tips of each limb.  This supply of water and nutrients is used by leaves to photosynthesize, creating sugars the tree will use for energy.  Phloem tissue is responsible for distributing sugars (and other compounds generated from the sugar energy) back down the stem to other plant parts, ultimately storing any unused energy in the roots for next year.  As trees enter winter dormancy, cambium growth stops for the year.  The following spring, the tree will use energy stored in its roots to initiate growth again, creating another annual growth ring.

As cambium tissue creates new xylem and phloem, the older layers are pushed aside, becoming wood to the inside and bark to the outside.  Over time both of these layers become non-living portions of the tree stem.  We often refer to the non-living inner wood as heartwood, a term I am sure many are familiar with.  Bark is retained to protect the stem although it remains nonliving and does not exhibit further growth.   Therefore, plates of bark tissue begin to separate as the tree stem enlarges overtime.  Based on individual characteristics or genetics of each tree species, a unique exterior bark pattern develops.  Believe it or not, bark is distinctive enough that many tree species are readily identified by bark pattern alone.

Since sycamores are known for their exfoliating bark, a pattern unique to their species, excessive bark shedding may just be a sign of excessive growth.  With adequate moisture, it is reasonable to expect some of the highest growth rates of the season this time of year.  Thus, an otherwise healthy sycamore shedding bark is simply a sign of rapid stem growth, which is a good thing.

It is important to note that exfoliating bark on sycamores typically occurs on younger stems.  As the tree ages and the trunk becomes large, some bark is actually retained which creates a vastly different appearance than younger, vigorously growing stems up in the canopy.  If bark on the lower trunk begins to fall off or slough, this may be a sign of health problems.

For example, wetwood is a condition caused by a complex of bacteria that produce internal pressure in the tree creating a waterish material, called slime flux, which oozes out through wounds in the bark.  These wounds, along with the persistent flow of slime flux, can cause more extensive tissue death resulting in bark falling off or sloughing.  Thankfully, the constant presence of slime flux oozing down the trunk is a blatant symptom of this condition and will often precede any bark sloughing, making it easy to identify. 

Other serous conditions that create sloughing bark on lower tree stems are also associated with telltale signs of health problems, such as foliar symptoms on leaves or dead limbs in the upper tree canopy.  So, if your sycamore is otherwise healthy, but shedding a lot of bark from the canopy this summer, rest assured that is a natural part of your tree’s annual growth and little more than a yard maintenance issue.

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Trees

Plant health care

Plant disease

The Big White Tree with the Peeling Bark

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gregdodge

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American Sycamore

I was recently asked whether or not I knew why the bark on American Sycamore drops off the tree in large thin flakes. Coincidentally, while walking around the Outdoor Exhibits this winter with camera in hand, I’ve been taking photos of various trees to use on this blog in a series of informal, mini-field guides. My intention was to start with some of the more readily identifiable winter trees, trees without leaves. Although winter’s nearly over, this is a good time to squeeze in at least one of those mini-guides.

One of the easiest of trees to identify is the American Sycamore. It’s white upper bark standing off against the winter sky, and other trees in the forest, make it hard to miss and appreciate.

Sycamore is a tree of the bottomlands. Just about any stream or river in our area has it’s share of sycamores growing along its banks, often alongside River Birch. Here at the Museum it grows next to the Wetlands as well as in the swamp between Catch the Wind and Explore the Wild. This handsome tree is often planted along city streets but its roots are near the water.

Many trees have a different type of bark at the base of the trunk than they do at the younger, upper portion of the tree. The sycamore takes this to the extreme.

Take a look at the tree on the right. Scroll up and follow the bark up to the top. It starts out as “typical” gray bark. As you scroll up you’ll notice that the darker bark begins to flake off until finally it becomes nearly all white at the top of the tree.

Towards the middle of the three, starting at about a quarter to a third-way up the tree, the bark often appears “camouflaged” with various gray, brown, and green hues.

Below are some close-ups of the bark.

The lower portion of the trunk has rough gray-brown bark.The bark becomes scaly and flakes off about 1/4 the way up the trunk. It often appears as if camouflaged.Towards the top of mature trees the bark may be nearly all white.

But, why do sycamores shed their bark? Why does the bark peel off in large thin flakes all season long? I’ve sometimes wondered that myself, but apparently not long or hard enough to actually find out…until now.

Trees have bark to help protect them from losing moisture and drying out, protect themselves from insects (although there are many insects that get past this defense), birds (woodpeckers go in after the insects), and disease. And, all trees have bark specific to the trees themselves. Flowering Dogwood has scaly “alligator” bark. Loblolly Pine has furrowed, segmented bark which bares a resemblance to the loblollies on a dried lake bed. Shagbark Hickory has a shaggy appearance with big, gray pieces of bark sticking out from the trunk. Sycamore has bark that peels off and becomes white near the upper portion of the tree.

What evolutionary advantage is it for a tree to shed it’s bark the way sycamores do? Everything from the tree’s favored habitat to photosynthesis has been suggested by people who should know, people who study trees. Most of the theories that I’ve read seem like sound reasons for this bark shedding habit. Apparently though, there is no definitive answer to the question of why this tree looks and behaves the way it does.

Instead of me quoting or paraphrasing the various suggested answers to this question, from another source, it may be easier for you to read them yourself. The linked article is from the Daily Plant out of NYC, NY and tries to answer the question of why sycamore sheds its bark through an interview with Dr. Marc Abrams, Professor of Forest Ecology at Penn State University.

Oh yeah, back to the identification of the tree. If the bark doesn’t nail down the ID of this tree for you, perhaps the many fruit balls that typically dangle from the branches will do it.

Sycamore has fruit balls on its branches all winter.

The fruit hang from the tree throughout the winter, are about an inch to an inch and a quarter in diameter and, unlike the spiky seed balls of Sweetgum, are soft to the touch.

On your next walk through Explore the Wild stop at the platform midway down the boardwalk. If you stand facing the Animal Footprints Exhibit and look about 40 degrees or so to your left you’ll see an excellent example of an American Sycamore with all of the features described above. Another is about the same amount of degrees to your right. If you look about 90 degrees to your right you’ll see a slim, straight sycamore which is nearly all green, all the way to the crown. Why is this sycamore green and not white? That one will have to wait for another day, maybe.

Enjoy your walk.

Hardwood Trees / Types of Hardwood Trees / Harder than Steel

Mankind has always needed solid materials. It is believed that various metals, alloys, such as steel, cast iron, and so on, have the highest hardness rates. But there are "champions" with high rates for this parameter among trees, the wood of which is much stronger than the hardest metals.

Iron wood

Among the very first tools that man began to use at the very dawn of civilization, there were not only bone and stone, but also wooden objects. Even then, still not knowing anything about such a concept as hardness, people noticed that for different trees and shrubs, wood differs in strength, the force with which tools made from it can act on other objects without being damaged or destroyed. From this people came to the concept of hardness. The trees that had the highest scores for this characteristic were called "iron".

It should be noted that in different areas, on different continents and continents, this name meant completely different tree species. But for the most part, in addition to high strength, they had other similar parameters. In particular, the wood of these types of trees:

Today, thanks to the high development of science and technology, people have penetrated the most secret secrets of nature, gained knowledge about biological and physical laws, learned to determine the hardness of various materials. In particular, the following two main methods are used for testing wood: Brinell and Rockwell. They got their name from the names of the scientists who developed them and put them into practice. In the first case (according to Brinell), to diagnose the test sample, it is affected by a special ball, and in the second (according to Rockwell) with the help of a diamond tool. After the end of the test, a depression of varying depth remains on the surface of the material (wood). By its size, the hardness of the tree is judged.

For some types of wood, this parameter is so high that it exceeds the values ​​of a similar characteristic for metals and their alloys. The wood of such trees, they are called "iron", people use to solve various problems. It was made earlier and is being produced now:

The strength index of different trees of the same variety is influenced by:

A high hardness value can be both an advantage and disadvantage of wood, depending on the intended use. In most cases, iron wood has a very beautiful texture, unusual color, so it is especially in demand in the production of various furniture and furnishings. As positive factors inherent in them and associated with the high hardness of wood, one can note increased wear resistance, undemanding care, no need for additional processing, impregnation with pesticides. The negative points include: a significant cost of the material, difficulty in processing, difficulties in assembling, fixing furniture on the wall, repair.

Varieties of "iron trees"

As mentioned earlier, there are many trees with high hardness values ​​that are classified as "iron trees". Among the most widely used in manufacturing, construction, for the manufacture of furniture, the following can be mentioned.

Jatoba - Brazilian cherry

In the tropical forests of Central and South America, a tree grows, which is called the South American (Brazilian) cherry. The height of individual specimens can exceed 40 m. Young shoots, pubescent with small brownish hairs, form a wide crown. Compound leaves are assembled from two pointed, crescent-shaped leaves, having a length of 7.5 cm.

The South American plant is not related to the common cherry fruit tree in our country. Perhaps the plant got its name because of the wood, the core of which has a dark red or rich orange color. After cutting, within a week, it very quickly acquires a dark, brick-red hue.

Jatoba is one of the hardest breeds (7 points according to Brinell), used for the manufacture of furniture, decorative elements.

Sucupira

This is another representative of the South American flora, growing in the forest thickets of Colombia, Brazil, Venezuela. Expressive texture, small, narrow yellowish or light veins on a dull reddish-brown wood, lighter towards the edge, make it easily recognizable, very decorative. In addition to high hardness and strength, the distinctive quality of sucupira is the presence of oily substances in the layers of the tree, which prevent the development of diseases, strokes, and other pests.

Hardness of about 5.6 points makes it difficult to saw wood, which requires strict adherence to technology, which, if not followed, can lead to damage to all harvested raw materials. But the processing (grinding, polishing) is quite simple, which allows you to get high-quality, beautiful parquet flooring from it in a wide range of colors from cocoa with milk to burgundy. Products made from sucupira do not fade under the influence of ultraviolet rays, are not affected by fungus, harmful insects.

It takes about 100 years from planting until the plant reaches maturity, but already when the tree reaches 25 years of age, it can be processed. At this time, its trunk has an almost cylindrical trunk, devoid of side branches and shoots.

Muttenia

A very interesting tree grows in the West African rainforest, reaching 50-60 m in height, with a trunk diameter of about 1 m. The color of its wood resembles the color of walnut, and the structure is teak. This type of wood is called - turbidity. It belongs to the category of "iron", since the hardness value for it is 5 points. However, this value is not always sufficient and in some cases it can be damaged by mechanical action.

Mutania wood is valued by furniture makers, builders, because it does not crack, does not warp during the drying process, and when sawn, radial rays of a violet hue “appear” on it. High hygroscopicity does not allow wood to be treated with varnish, primer. But this does not need to be done, because it has an original natural luster. Mutania wood is used to make furniture, it is used for interior decoration, used in the production of parquet, veneer.

Intsia

Under the name merbau, the wood of various types of intsia is widely used in European countries for the manufacture of parquet. With its high hardness (4.9 Brinell), it is even suitable for flooring in public buildings. In addition, it has increased moisture resistance, which makes it possible to use it in bathrooms, baths, saunas.

Intsia distribution area - South Asia, Oceania, New Guinea, Madagascar. The plant belongs to the legume family. The height of individual specimens reaches 30-50 meters, the diameter of the trunk is 1.5 m. At the same time, there are practically no side branches on the trunk.

Merbau wood has a range of colors from light orange to yellow. After sawing, processing, polishing, the surface of the wood becomes brownish and acquires a beautiful silver, bronze tint.

Canadian Maple

The national flag of Canada is decorated with a stylized image of a maple leaf, since the sugar maple (Canadian) is a symbol of this country. Acer saccharum is a deciduous tree belonging to the Sapindaceae family. It occupies vast areas in North America. Maple also grows on the territory of our country, and recently it has been actively used in Europe as an ornamental plant for decorating gardens, parks, squares.

The lifespan of one plant can be 400 years. During this time, it grows up to 30-40 m in height, the thickness of the trunk reaches 1 m. Decorative maple gives a picturesque crown, consisting of small about 11 cm in length and width, leaves of the original form. In summer they are dark green, with the onset of autumn they acquire red, orange, yellow hues.

In addition to being decorative, Acer saccharum has a sweet-tasting sap that can be harvested in early spring and used in cooking, and durable, hard (4.8 Brinell points) wood, widely used for making furniture, expensive musical instruments, parquet, and cladding panels. , gun butts and even bowling pins.

Yarra (eucalyptus)

In total, about 700 species of eucalyptus trees from the myrtle family (Myrtaceae) grow in Australia. They grow very rapidly, especially at a young age, adding up to 5 m in height in a year. The growth of an adult plant is about 40-50 m. Among the features of eucalyptus: the ability to “drop” the bark in autumn, the location of the leaves edge to the sun, so they do not give a shadow at all, beautiful from dark red to light pink color of wood, a texture reminiscent of mahogany (mahogany) and high hardness (Brinell 5).

Yarra - wood of Eucalyptus marginata, dense, hard and flexible, easy to process: polished, ground. But she has a drawback - it is very difficult to cut it perfectly evenly. The main use of yarra wood is the decoration and cladding of yachts, boats, buildings in areas with high humidity.

Rosewood

In the Amazon jungle grows a very unusual tree Dalbergia decipularis or bahia. It grows only in the subtropics of Brazil and is notable for its hard wood (4.4 Brinell points) with a beautiful texture, coloring from yellow to pink, with small red touches. But the most amazing thing is its smell. Bahia gives off a fragrance characteristic of rose bushes. Because of this, the plant received another name - rosewood.

The wood is perfectly polished and used in furniture production, for the manufacture of musical instruments (recorders, guitars), gift boxes for cigars (humidor), for woodcarving. But still, its main value is the essential oil, which has antiseptic, bactericidal properties. It is widely used in cosmetology, dermatology, used as an analgesic, sedative. In addition, it is a powerful aphrodisiac.

Ash

Elastic, durable and hard (4.0 points according to Brinell) wood has ash, which can be found in almost all corners of our country. It belongs to the Maslinov family and, with an average height of 25-35 m, can sometimes reach a height of 60 m. The trunk diameter usually does not exceed 1 m. The ancient Novgorodians noticed the special hardness of ash wood. They used it to make combat (bows, clubs) and hunting (spears, spears) weapons.

Oak

In our country, oak is a kind of standard of hardness. We say: "Strong as an oak" when we want to emphasize the character traits of a person who has a strong will, purposefulness. However, when compared with other "iron" trees, its hardness is not so great, only 3.8 Brinell points. Oak, the Beech family, can grow both as a tree and as a shrub. Depending on the growing conditions, its wood differs in strength, strength, and severity. It is used as ornamental, for the production of furniture, musical instruments, and as a timber.

Beech

This is another member of the Beech family with a wood hardness of 3.8 points. Its smooth trunk, reaching 30 m in height and 2 m in diameter, is covered with thin gray bark. The dense crown obscures the lower branches, and they eventually die off. Wood is widely used in the manufacture of rifle butts, musical and measuring instruments, weaving shuttles, and furniture. In particular, after steaming, it becomes flexible, so it is used in the manufacture of Viennese chairs.

What kind of trees will Komsomolskaya Pravda give to Moscow

Komsomolskaya Pravda

BUSINESS PRESS

September 4, 2013 19:30

List of seedlings for the "Let's Make Moscow a Park!"

Horse chestnut is a tree up to 20-25 meters high (maximum 30) and a crown diameter of up to 15-20 meters with a massive trunk and a dense, wide-rounded crown. The buds are large, sticky, early blooming in spring, greenish-pink. The leaves are large, dark green, compound, palmate, long-petiolate. Leaves at full disclosure give a thick shadow. Autumn color is yellow-brown. It blooms in May, after the leaves bloom, the flowers are white with red speckles, collected in large candle-shaped inflorescences. The fruits are fleshy, spherical, green, with thorns, containing 1-3 shiny dark brown seeds. Decorative due to the majestic crown, large palmate leaves, candle-shaped inflorescences and spherical green prickly fruits.

Horse chestnut.

Linden is a tree with a dense, oval or broad pyramidal crown, a slender trunk 18-25 meters high (up to a maximum of 30 m) and a crown diameter of up to 10-15 meters when standing alone. The upper branches of the crown are directed upwards, the middle ones go almost horizontally, the lower branches hang down. The leaves are heart-shaped with a drawn apex, dark green above, bluish on the underside. Autumn color is light yellow. The flowers are small, yellowish-white, fragrant, collected in inflorescences with a light green bract. Blooms in late June-July. The fruits are spherical nuts.

Linden.

Norway Maple Drummondi - Tree up to 10-12 meters high, crown diameter up to 5-8. In youth, the crown is broadly pyramidal, with age the crown becomes rounded. The bark of young branches is reddish-gray, smooth, the trunk is covered with dark, almost black bark with numerous shallow cracks. The leaves are large, five-lobed, pink when blooming, and then a white, rather wide stripe appears along the edge of the leaf, the middle of the leaf blade is bright green. Leaves turn slightly yellow in autumn. Blooms in May at the same time as the leaves open. Flowers yellowish green, small.

Drummondi Norway Maple.

Norway Maple Krimson King is a beautiful, large tree with a round crown.

Dark, beet-red leaves that form a cloud of red, brown and orange spots in autumn and small, red-tinted clusters of spring flowers.

Norway Maple Krimson King

Ginnala Maple (K. riverine) is a deciduous prostrate shrub or small tree reaching 3–10 m in height, with a short trunk up to 20–40 cm in diameter and thin straight branches. The leaves are opposite, simple, 4-10 cm long and 3-6 cm wide, deeply cut, palmate. Leaves turn orange to red in autumn. Blossoms in spring, at the same time as the leaves bloom, the flowers are yellow-green

Ginnala maple (K. riverine).

Mountain ash "Pomegranate" - obtained from crossing the mountain ash with large-fruited hawthorn in 1925.

The tree has a beautiful flowering with abundant white flower caps, rich burgundy fruits, split leaves.

Cherry-sized fruits, burgundy, sweet and sour. The tree is very productive and quite hardy to our severe frosts. Ripening time: September. The branches carry very beautiful, spectacular bunches of pomegranate-colored fruits, for which this rowan got the name Pomegranate.

Mountain ash "Pomegranate".

Stricta hawthorn - deciduous, large shrub with a straight trunk and a symmetrical conical crown, densely branched skeletal branches, becoming more dense and compact with age. In old trees, the crown is wide and openwork with slightly hanging spreading lateral branches. Height 5-7 m, crown width 4-5 m. Gray-brown bark, smooth, with curved spines. The leaves are alternately arranged, broadly elliptical, rounded, 5-7 cm long, the edges are sharp-toothed, shiny, dark green. The flowers are white. Blooms in May-June. The fruits are purple-red.

Strict hawthorn.

Puzeroplodnik is a shrub 2 - 2.5 m high, 1.5 - 2 m wide. The crown is dense, rounded. The leaves are pink-red when blooming. Later bronze-red. The flowers are white-pink, collected in hemispherical inflorescences.

Bubbler.

Derain is a shrub from 0.8 m to 2-2.5 m high under favorable growing conditions, crown width from 1 m to 2 m. Crown with vertical purple-red shoots freely arranged. Leaves with creamy white stripes. Young growths with bright golden leaves. It blooms with cream flowers from July to August, continuously collected in a corymb. The fruits are white and small. Unusual cream color of adult leaves and bright golden young.

Deren.

Mountain ash "Scarlet large" - the variety was obtained at the All-Russian Research Institute of Genetics and Breeding of Fruit Plants. I. V. Michurina. Vysokozimostoyky, transfers temperature drops to minus 50 °C. Resistant to pests and diseases.

The fruits ripen in early September. The fruits are very large, weighing 2.3-2.5 g, similar to cherries, red

Mountain ash "Scarlet large".

Willow - a tree or shrub up to 17 m high. The crown is powerful, weeping, ovoid. Branches with a bluish bloom, thin, shiny. The leaves are lanceolate, glabrous bright green above, glaucous below, with large reniform stipules. Blooms before blooming or simultaneously with blooming leaves. Beautiful weeping crown shape, graceful hanging shoots with long leaves with large reniform stipules.

Willow.

Silver birch "Fastigiata" - slender tree up to 10-15 meters high.

The crown at a young age is narrow pyramidal. In adulthood, broadly columnar, more fluffy, blown, does not retain its vertical shape. The crown diameter reaches 5 meters wide.

The bark of young stems is white, peeling off in thin layers. Later, the bark fades to dark gray. In the lower part of the trunk it becomes coarsely fissured and deeply furrowed black. All main branches are strictly vertical and have an acute angle from the trunk. The branches are unevenly wavy-twisted; in adult trees in the upper part of the crown, they hang down in an arcuate manner. Young branches are reddish-brown, partly tufted. Autumn leaf color is yellow, sometimes brown. They fall late.

Silver birch 'Fastigiata'.

Scarlet apple tree - tree height 5 m. The crown is dense, rounded. The leaves are green with a reddish tinge, deeply lobed. Shoots are reddish. The flowers are pink. The tree has a beautiful bloom of pink flowers in the spring.

Scarlet apple tree.

Bird cherry Maaka "Amber Beauty" - a tree up to 10-15 meters tall with a broad pyramidal crown shape up to 4-5 meters in diameter. The trunk is covered with golden-brown smooth, shiny bark, peeling off across the trunk in papery, thin films. The leaves are shiny, elliptical with a drawn top, they are light green in spring, bright green in summer, becoming lemon-colored in autumn. In autumn, it quickly and quickly sheds foliage. The flowers are white in erect racemes, practically odorless. Blooms for 2 weeks in May. The fruits are small, round, black, very bitter, inedible. The fruits ripen in the second half of July.

Bird cherry Maaka "Amber Beauty".

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