Eastern Cottonwood
Populus deltoides Bartr. ex Marsh
Also known as Carolina Poplar.
Mature Size: Typically 80 to 100 feet in height and 3 to 4 feet in diameter, but may reach a height of 200 feet on good sites.
Form: Somewhat vase-shaped, with an open spreading crown.
Habitat: River borders, floodplains and other moist, well-drained sites.
Leaves
Alternate, 3 to 6 inches long and 3 to 5 inches wide; widest and often heart shaped at base, tapering to a pointed tip; thick, yellow midvein; leaf edges with shallow, rounded teeth; leaf stalk flattened.
Flowers
On dangling catkins, appearing before the leaves; males and females on separate trees.
Fruit
On female trees only, a capsule ¼ inch long, which splits to release many tiny, cottony seeds.
Bark
Smooth, gray to yellow-green when young; later turning gray with thick ridges and deep furrows.
Twigs
Thick, somewhat angular in cross-section, yellowish; buds ¾ inch long, covered with several brown, gummy scales.
Values and Uses
The wood is soft and lightweight, often warping when dried. It can be used for baskets, crates, rough lumber, plywood, excelsior, fiberboard, paper pulp. It makes a fast-growing shade tree for landscape use, and it can be useful for soil stabilization.
Did You Know?
Pioneers quickly learned that a stand of cottonwoods indicated water fairly close to the land's surface - an important consideration for settlers of the arid West.
