22 March 2025
As the weather warmed this month American sycamore (Platanus occidentalis) seed balls disintegrated to disperse their wind-driven seeds.
On 16 March it was very windy when I visited Herr’s Island back channel. Sycamore achenes (seed packets) blew by me in the wind and piled up in the cracks like snow drifts.
Sycamore snow.
They had come from seed balls like these that had waited all winter for spring heat to make them stretch and burst.
Not only do they disperse on the wind but the fluff-tops have a second mode of transportation. They float.
Water carries them to their favorite habitats.
American sycamore is found most commonly in bottomland or floodplain areas, thriving in the wet environments provided by rivers, streams, or abundant groundwater.
— Wikipedia American sycamore account
You’ll be able to identify American sycamores easily before leaf out. Look for the white upper trunks of large trees along stream and river banks.
Well!!! This was one heck of an informative and interesting post. Thank you, Kate, for all of the new information. I never knew this about sycamores. I love how the seed balls hang like ornaments!! I hope you are having a great weekend. You know I always appreciate when you give my old brain new information.