Kansas State Tree

Kansas State Tree

Eastern Cottonwood

Salicaceae Populus deltoidesEastern Cottonwood Tree
Leaf
Alternate, simple, pinnately veined, 3 to 6 inches long, triangular (deltoid) in shape with a crenate/serrate margin. The petiole is flattened and glands are present at the top of the petiole.

Flower

Dioecious, male and female as pendulous catkins, appearing before the leaves.

Fruit

Cottony seeds, 1/4 inch long borne in a dehiscent capsule. Maturing over summer.

Twig

Stout, somewhat angled and yellowish. Buds are 3/4 inch long, covered with several brown, resinous scales. Has a bitter aspirin taste.

Bark

Smooth, gray to yellow-green when young. Later turning gray with thick ridges and deep furrows.

Form

A large tree with a clear bole and an open spreading crown resulting
in a somewhat vase-shaped form.

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