# California Sycamore (Platanus racemosa)

> California sycamore, Platanus racemosa: its height and zones, when it flowers and fruits, how fast it grows, and the natives we grow for the same ground.

Blue Whale Trees, a native tree nursery in the United States. Web version: https://bluewhaletrees.com/species/california-sycamore/

![California sycamore leaves with deep pointed lobes and spiky seed balls hanging in a string from one stalk](https://bluewhaletrees.com/img/species/california-sycamore-1000.jpg?v=83b46f40 "California sycamore on San Ysidro Mountain, California, on April 21, 2011. The oldest tree dated by its rings was at least 188 years old.")
*Photo: Jim Morefield, [CC BY-SA 2.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0) ([source](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ACalifornia_sycamore%2C_Platanus_racemosa_%2815875631919%29.jpg))*

Large tree, 40 to 80 feet where planted, zones 7 to 10; full sun or part shade; dry, average or wet ground.

We do not grow California sycamore, and it is not in our shop. This page gathers what our tools say about it and the natives we grow for the same ground.

## At a glance

| Fact | California Sycamore |
| --- | --- |
| Other names | Western sycamore, California planetree |
| Form | Large tree |
| Height, feet | 40 to 80 where planted; up to 116 in its native stands |
| Spread, feet | Up to 50 |
| Zones | 7 to 10 |
| Sun | Full sun or part shade |
| Soil moisture | Dry, average or wet ground |
| Growth | Fast |
| Leaves | Deciduous |
| Traits | Wildlife value, street tree |
| Flowers | March to May |
| Fruit | Seed balls, June to December |
| Pollination | Needs a second, unrelated tree. Male and female flowers grow on the same tree. Its relative American sycamore sets few filled seeds from its own pollen, so plant a second one nearby. |
| Lifespan | The oldest tree dated by its rings was at least 188 years. Only a tiny share of trees has ever been ring-counted or cross-dated. |
| Black walnut | Not named on the Morton Arboretum's lists |
| Ground | Stream banks |
| Native in | 1 state |

California sycamore is native in 1 state: [California](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/native/index.html.md?state=CA). The states are the USDA PLANTS Database's records, with the native range read from the Wildflower Center and the Woody Plant Seed Manual.

## What our tools say

- [How fast it grows and how big it gets, by site](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/growth/index.html.md?species=california-sycamore): the growth estimator
- [Whether it suits your zone, sun and soil](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/site-check/index.html.md?species=california-sycamore): the planting-site check
- [How far from a house, wires and a septic field](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/distance/index.html.md?species=california-sycamore&near=house,septic,pavement,wires,boundary,tree): the planting-distance tool
- [What grows with it in the wild and in a yard](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/companions/index.html.md?species=california-sycamore): the companion species tool
- [When to plant it where you live](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/planting-window/index.html.md?species=california-sycamore): the planting-window tool
- [When it flowers and fruits, month by month](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/calendar/index.html.md?plants=california-sycamore): the bloom and fruit calendar
- [How to sow its seed, with dates for your place](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/sowing/index.html.md?species=california-sycamore): the seed sowing planner
- [How many to plant for a crop of seed](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/pollination/index.html.md?plants=california-sycamore:2): the pollination planner
- [Whether one you have can be moved, and what the move takes](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/transplant/index.html.md?species=california-sycamore): the transplant planner
- [How old one is, from its trunk](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/tree-age/index.html.md?species=california-sycamore): the tree age calculator
- [How a big one scores against the champion trees](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/big-tree/index.html.md?species=california-sycamore): the big-tree measurer

## For the same ground, we grow

- [Chokecherry](https://bluewhaletrees.com/plants/chokecherry/index.html.md) (*Prunus virginiana*): small tree, 20 to 30 feet, zones 2 to 10. Shares stream banks in the wild.
- [More natives for this ground in the tree finder](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/tree-finder/index.html.md?size=large-tree&sun=full&moisture=average)
- [Every companion of California sycamore in the companion species tool](https://bluewhaletrees.com/tools/companions/index.html.md?species=california-sycamore)

## Read from

Its figures come from the Woody Plant Seed Manual, the USDA PLANTS Database, Cal Poly's SelecTree, Oregon State University's Landscape Plants, the Wildflower Center, Calscape, the California Invasive Plant Council, the Jepson eFlora and the International Tree-Ring Data Bank.