Platanus (genus, planes)

Japanese name: プラタナス
Scientific name: Platanus

[Overview]
A deciduous tree 20–40 m tall, with a trunk 1–2 m in diameter.
The bark peels off irregularly, giving a mottled pattern.
Young branches and young leaves are at first densely covered with stellate hairs.
The leaves are alternate, palmately divided into 3–7 lobes, with palmate veins.
The base of the leaf stalk is swollen and covers the winter bud.
The leaves turn yellow in autumn.
There are male and female flowers, both in round inflorescences that hang on long stalks.
The fruit is a round aggregate of achenes that hangs down, and the seeds are dispersed by wind.

[History]
Introduced to Japan in the Meiji period, the London plane, the Oriental plane and the American sycamore are cultivated.

[Cultivation]
Propagate from seed or by cuttings.
It prefers sunny, well-drained, fertile, moderately moist soil, but it adapts well to its environment, so as long as it is sunny it is not particular about soil and grows well even in poor soil.
For potted plants, water thoroughly when the soil surface dries; for plants in the ground, rainfall is sufficient.
For fertilizer, apply organic fertilizer around the plant in winter.
Pests include the fall webworm and the tepporomushi (the larva of a longhorn beetle).

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