Utah State Tree

Utah State Tree

Quaking Aspen 

Salicaceae Populus tremuloidesutah-quacken-aspen

Leaf

Alternate, simple, 1 to 3 inches long, green above and paler below, heart-shaped to nearly round with a fine-toothed margin, the petiole is flattened.


Flower

Species is dioecious; male and female hanging catkins are 1 to 3 inches long.


Fruit:

Catkin (2 to 4 inches long), with attached light green capsules which contain many small hairy seeds.


Twig

Slender, glabrous, reddish brown often with a gray, waxy film; buds conical, reddish brown, terminal bud 1/4 inch long, maybe slightly resinous.


Bark:

At first smooth, creamy yellowish-white to very light green; later developing thick furrows and becoming dark, especially near the base.


Form

Small (30 to 40 feet tall) upright tree, which often occurs in thickets.

Copyright 2019 Virginia Tech Dept. of Forest Resources and Environmental
Conservation; Photos and text by: John Seiler, Edward Jensen,
Alex Niemiera, and John Peterson; Silvics reprinted from Ag
Handbook 654; range map source information