Question:
My sycamore is losing some of its bark. Is there something wrong with the tree?Answer:
Shedding bark on some trees is a completely normal development. The bark of most young trees is smooth and thin. As the tree grows, the bark layer thickens with the outermost tissue eventually dying. Continued growth pushes the bark outward, sometimes causing the outer layers to crack. On some trees, the outer dead layers peel and drop off, revealing the inner layers of bark.
Shedding or peeling bark is characteristic of trees such as:
- sycamore
- redbud
- silver maple
- paperbark maple
- shagbark hickory
- birch
- lacebark pine
The grayish brown bark on a large sycamore tree, for example, flakes off in irregular blotches, revealing a cream or whitish gray inner bark. The loss of the outer layers of bark on sycamores is completely normal.
Last updated on
February 27, 2022