Populus grandidentata (Bigtooth Aspen)

Populus grandidentata

Populus grandidentata Michx.

Populus grandidentata Michx. var. angustata Victorin

Populus grandidentata Michx. var. meridionalis Tidestr.

Populus grandidentata Michx. var. subcordata Victorin

Bigtooth Aspen, Large-tooth Aspen, American Aspen, White Poplar, Aspen

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Rosidae	Roses, legumes, proteas, dogwoods, hydrangeas, mistletoes, euphorbias, grapes, many more
Order	Malpighiales	A broad group encompassing 16,000 species
Family	Salicaceae	Willow family
Genus	Populus	Latin for “people” because the many moving leaves in a breeze resemble a moving populace
Species	grandidentata	From grandis, “large,” and dentata, “toothed.”

About plant names...

Bigtooth aspen is a native of eastern North America. It prefers sandy, loamy soils, including high, rocky sites. This is a clonal species, forming small groves of genetically identical trees.

Plants: Deciduous tree, 59-115' (18-35 m) tall, with a trunk 12-55" (30-140 cm) in diameter. Younger trees have smooth olive green bark. With age, the bark becomes gray or gray-brown, thick, and roughly grooved, with diamond-shaped lenticels.

Leaves: Alternate, simple, ovate to nearly circular, 2½-4½" (7-12 cm) × 1¼-4" (3.5-10 cm), with large blunt teeth. When leaves first open, they are covered by dense whitish hairs. Later leaves are dark bluish green on top, and pale green below. In the fall, they are golden yellow. The leaf stem (petiole) is flattened vertically.

Flowers: These trees are dioecious: male and female flowers occur on different trees. Both flowers are catkins, clusters of drooping narrow fuzzy flowerheads. Both catkins are about 1-3" (3-8 cm) long. The male catkins have 6-13 red stamens, while the female catkins have red stigmas.

Fruits: Fruits are in similar catkins, ¼-½" (8-15 mm) long. Each fruit is a thin cone with a rounded base and two valves, a little like a pear, up to ⅛" (6 mm) long. They eventually open to reveal tiny brown tufted seeds.

Online References:

Populus grandidentata at the Virginia Tech Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation

Populus grandidentata on the New England Wildflower Society’s GoBotany site

Populus grandidentata on BorealForest.org

Populus grandidentata at Minnesota Wildflowers

Populus grandidentata at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Populus grandidentata at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Cofrin Center for Biodiversity

References:

Nelson, Gil; Earle, Christopher J.; Spellenberg, Richard; More, David (Illus.); Hughes, Amy K. (Ed.), Trees of Eastern North America, Princeton University Press, 2014, p. 592

8/6/2013 · Dunstable Rural Land Trust, Dunstable, MA
≈ 16 × 12" (40 × 30 cm)

8/7/2013 · Amos Kendall Conservation Land, Dunstable, MA
≈ 7 × 6" (17 × 14 cm)

6/27/2012 · Townsend Wildlife Management Area, Townsend, MA
≈ 6 × 4" (15 × 10 cm)

8/6/2013 · Dunstable Rural Land Trust, Dunstable, MA
≈ 21 × 31" (53 × 79 cm)

Populus grandidentata description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 12 Oct 2018.

8/6/2013 · Dunstable Rural Land Trust, Dunstable, MA

8/6/2013 · Dunstable Rural Land Trust, Dunstable, MA
≈ 21 × 31" (53 × 79 cm)

8/6/2013 · Dunstable Rural Land Trust, Dunstable, MA
≈ 20 × 16" (50 × 41 cm)

6/27/2012 · Townsend Wildlife Management Area, Townsend, MA
≈ 4½ × 7" (11 × 17 cm)

Range:

About this map...