38 TREES AS GOOD CITIZENS 
a point not far above the ground; its bark is brown and 
rough, the leaves a dull olive green, blunt toothed and 
triangular, often broader than long, and tapering to a 
sharp point. The Carolina Poplar, or Cottonwood, has 
a wider crown and more open branching than the Lom¬ 
bardy Poplar, and is marked by its large twigs at the 
ends of branches; its bark is dark grey, almost smooth, and 
its leaves are larger than those of the Lombardy and have 
coarse teeth. The Quaking or American Aspen, another 
member of the Poplar group, is easily recognized by its 
finely toothed, small, trembling leaves, its reddish 
brown twigs and its sharply pointed narrow buds; its 
trunk, gradually tapering to the top and its slender 
branches. In the Large-toothed Aspen the buds are 
thicker and broader and the leaves have much coarser and 
more remote teeth. The unfolding leaves are white and 
woolly. 
The Ginkgo is a tree of unusual appearance, with 
slender branches, extending upward and outward from 
the trunk at an angle of approximately 45 degrees. The 
trunk and branches are straight and tapering, the bark 
dark brown or greyish, smooth in youth and becoming 
rough and seamed. The leaves are a bright green, fan¬ 
shaped, and have several short clefts in the edge, and 
grow from alternating short button-like branches in 
clusters of from three to six. Because the leaves resemble 
those of the maidenhair fern in shape, though much 
larger, this tree is frequently called the Maidenhair Tree. 
The American Beech is marked by its smooth, close 
grey bark, hugging the trunk and branches even in old 
trees, which permanently show every cut or bruise. In 
its close bark it resembles the Red Maple, but in the 
Beech the branches and twigs are alternate, while in the 
Red Maple they grow opposite^ each other. The leaves 
