>including platanus acerifolia (The London plane)

Marty, I agree.

The London plane is Platanus x acerfolia, a hybrid of the American sycamore Platanus occidentalis and the oriental plane tree Platanus orientalis, so it must be a fairly recent import. It was, apparently, introduced in the 1700s and has done so well because of its ability to survive neglect and pollution.

"London plane probably is more tolerant of smoke, dust, soot, air pollution, reflected heat, pavement over the roots, wind, heavy pruning, and general abuse than any other tree, and quite possibly has been planted in more cities worldwide than any other tree."
http://www.floridata.com/ref/p/plat_xac.cfm

Our sycamores acer pseudoplatanus are very invasive and are causing problems in many areas. http://www.rfs.org.uk/totm/sycamore.htm

These days gardens are becoming so small that there lots of Japanese maples acer palmatum.