42 



Common Trees 



LARGE-TOOTHED ASPEN 



Poputus grandidentata, Michaux 



THE Large-toothed Aspen, also called Poplar, Popple and 

 Quaking Aspen, is a small to medium-size forest tree 

 rarely exceeding 60 feet in height and 2 feet in diameter. 



The leaves are simple, alternate, egg-shaped, 3 to 4 inches 

 long, coarsely toothed along margin. The leaf-stalks arc 

 flattened, which 

 makes possible 

 their quaking or 

 f I u 1 1 e ring. The 

 flowers are of two 

 kinds. They never 

 occur on the same 

 tree. The pollen- 

 bearing occur in 

 drooping tassels, 

 1 ^ to 2 ^ inches 

 long. The seed- 

 producing are also 

 arranged in tassels 

 which become 4 

 inches long when 

 mature. The fruit 

 is a 2-valved cap- 

 s u 1 e containing 

 many tiny tufted 

 seeds. The bark on 

 young stems is yel- 

 lowish-green t o 

 white, at first thin 

 and smooth, later 



becomes thick, large-toothed aspen 



rough and black. The twigs are yellowish-brown to red- 

 dish, often coated with a woolly, crusty down. The buds 

 are egg-shaped, covered with 6 to 7 light chestnut-brown 

 scales, often coated with a dusty, fiour-like woolly substance. 

 Those of the Quaking Aspen are smooth, glossy and var- 

 nished-like. The wood is soft, white to light brown, not 

 durable. It is used for paper pulp, rough lumber, boxes, 

 crates and buckets. 



The Large-toothed Aspen is found front Nova Scotia 

 south to Pennsylvania and along the mountains to North 

 Carolina and west through Ontario to Minnesota. It is 

 common throughout Ohio, occurring most frequently in the 

 southeastern section, where it often grows in thickets, aban- 

 doned fields, burnt-over areas and cut-over land. In places 

 it acts as a temporary shelter for more valuable trees. 



