The bark of a plane tree
Plane trees are among the most numerous large street and park trees planted in Greater London. The tree is commonly known as the 'plane' in England and as 'sycamore' in North America. They belong to the genus Platanus, family Platanaceae.

The botanic Latin name 'Platanus' is derived from an original Greek term, 'platanos', referring to the broad leaves. The common English name 'plane' is derived from this or its more modern derivatives in other European languages.