London plane

Platanus x hispanica

• Height: up to 35 m
• Trunk: Bark strikingly scaly, smooth, peeling to reveal a distinctly lighter-colored layer beneath, “camouflage pattern”
• Leaves: palmately lobed, 3- to 5-lobed, front lobes broadly triangular, dark green, underside lighter, 15–25 cm wide, petiole 5–10 cm long
• Flowers: inconspicuous solitary flowers, densely arranged in spherical heads about 1 cm in diameter, usually up to 3 on a pendulous stalk, in May
• Fruits/Seeds: spherical fruit clusters (3–4 cm) consisting of bristly-haired achenes (nut fruits), usually hanging in pairs on 15–20 cm long stalks, in September/October.
• Other: Hybrid of American and Oriental plane trees

^{Photos: Dorit Zimmermann (1,2,3,4,5)}