Question
Hi Tom
I Have 11 sycamore Trees all around my house, full grown. Are they any way I can Take A piece of the Tree and root start or can it be done. a lot of people tell me it can't be done.I have friends that want me to try and make them one from my trees.Thank you  Carol

Answer
Hi Carol,
According to the Forestry Service, cuttings from mature sycamore trees cannot be rooted under conventional means.  There is an air-layering process but I am not familiar with this particular process for this tree.  Sometimes there are suckers or small saplings growing at the base of the tree.  You can detach these from the mother tree and they will root readily with some rooting hormone and stuck into warm, wet sand and kept misted.  Rooting takes about 8 weeks.  Keep the environement warm and moist.  Strip off all but the last two or three leaves of the cutting.  Otherwise, you can propagate the trees from their seeds.  Seeds must be fresh from the current season.  I would advise, planting the seed in moist potting soil and sealing it in a plastic bag.  Leave it in the fridge for the winter and then return to a warm environment in the Spring.  Seedlings should emerge in a couple of weeks.  You can also plant the seedlings in a pot and leave them outdoors for the winter but keep the pots watered.  The cold period helps the seeds break dormancy and germinate when warm periods return.  I hope this helps.
Tom