Nurturing the Seeds
Plant the seeds in a shallow tray. Sycamore seeds grow best when you start them in a tray and then transfer them to a pot. Choose a shallow growing tray, but one that’s deep enough to let the seed take root. The plant will grow to about 4 inches (10 cm) in the first 2 months.
Bury the seeds about 0.125 inches (0.32 cm) deep. With the shallow tray filled with good, seed-starting soil, make a hole that’s no deeper than 0.125 inches (0.32 cm). This isn’t much, so if you have a ruler handy, it will be easier to tell. It may be easier to just push the seed slightly into the soil rather than making a hole first. Potting soil works well, but also look at the garden store for soil that specifically says it is for starting seeds. To make a rich soil mix, combine some potting soil with some soil from the planting site.
Cover the seed with coarse sand, peat moss, or leaf mold. The seed will grow best if it’s covered with something richer than soil. Coarse sand is the best option. Peat moss and leaf mold also have great nutrients for a sycamore seed. Make sure you don’t use too much or it will choke out the seed.
Set the tray in indirect sunlight. Sycamore seeds soak up a lot of sunlight when they are beginning to sprout. Place the tray somewhere that stays between 70 °F (21 °C) to 85 °F (29 °C). Make sure there is sunlight but that the tray is not in direct sunlight for very long. It’s best to keep the seed tray inside so that it doesn’t get soaked during heavy rains.
Water the soil as needed to keep it moist. You don’t necessarily have to water the seedlings every single day. Check the soil each day and it if seems to have lost moisture, water it. Water the soil just enough to moisten it, not to soak it through. A simple soil test is to stick your fingers into the soil. If you can press your fingers into the soil up to your knuckle and the soil feels moist, there’s enough water in the soil.
Move the tree to a pot when it reaches 4 inches (10 cm) in height. After a couple of months, the sycamore should be at about 4 inches (10 cm) in height. It should have a solid root system and leaves by this point. Transfer it from the shallow tray into a deeper pot with good drainage.
Transferring Saplings into the Ground
Let the sapling grow 2 feet (0.61 m) to 4 feet (1.2 m) before planting it. Sycamores are fast growing trees, but they take about a year to reach 2 feet (0.61 m) tall. It’s best to keep the sycamore in a pot for that much time. You may need to transfer it to bigger pot if it seems to become rootbound. Rootbound means that the roots have grown so much that they’ve filled the pot. Gently pull the sapling, along with its roots, out of the pot every 2 months to check that there is plenty of soil left in the pot.
Plant the seedling at least 15 feet (4.6 m) from your house. Sycamores grow tall, have a wide canopy, and grow an extensive root system. Because of this, you want to plant them far away from your house and other structures. 15 feet (4.6 m) is a good distance, but if you have the room, plant it even farther away. Consider sidewalks, sheds, barns, or other structures that the roots could grow under and harm. in its first year, and it can grow 24 inches (61 cm) per year after that.”|}}
Choose a spot that gets 6 hours of direct sunlight each day. Sycamore trees want to soak up the sun, so make sure you pick a wide open spot. If you already have a lot of trees, place the sycamore away from the rest. Spend a week or so watching your yard to see what parts get the most sun. Sycamore trees grow for decades, so you want to make sure it will continue to get sun as it grows tall.
Supplement the water supply for your tree during the first summer. You will need to supply the tree with at least 2 inches (5.1 cm) every 3 to 4 days. You can stop all supplemental watering once the rainy season begins.
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