Aspen - What Land Owners Need to Know

[Radar67]

Okay guys, I've done the reading on the USDA Plant site. I do not know of this species (Populus tremuloides Michx.) gowing in MS. Everything suggests it would grow here, but I also read it may be invasive. What can you northern folks tell me about this tree that I may need to know before planting?

I'm only talking about a couple or three trees, not a whole forest full.

[fkarcha]

Missouri is at the extreme southern and eastern boundary of Trembling Aspen in the Midwest, but it is definitely not invasive.  (USFS Hardwood Silvics manual)

For what purpose are you planting the trees?  Is this an urban planting?  Is it near any foundations?  It is hardly ever planted for industrial forestry because the things grow like weeds on their own - winter harvest, let sucker and grow, harvest, rinse, repeat.

[Radar67]

The planting would not be near any foundations. I want to plant a small section of my land with trees that are non-native to our area. An experiment, if you will. Probably no more than an acre total.

The growing like weeds is what concerns me. If they are going to spread, get out of control, or need an extreme amount of care, I'll shy away from them.

[fkarcha]

Aspen reproduces and spreads primarily by root suckers.  Suckering is induced in periods of stress, when the original tree dies, or the vegetation over-topping the root circle is removed.  Suckering can be controlled by deep tilling to kill the roots, herbicide treatments, or simply taking a brush saw to the suckers. 

I would say three or four trees will be easily controlled when young. 

[Mooseherder]

I cut a dozen Trembling Aspen that were too close to the camp last summer.  Always worried about them snapping in half middle of winter and landing on the roof when we aren't around.  There was evidence of it being a probability all around us.  These were good size.
The Wood Peckers like them also.

We do love the sound of the leaves trembling in the breeze and still have plenty of them around to enjoy.  Reality for me is mine are probably destined for future firewood a few at a time as they show evidence of dying.  I'm not qualified to make the assumption but I think they could become a problem for you. :P ???

[WDH]

Terry, you do not see many trembling aspen down South.  I don't think that they can tolerate the heat very well.

[SwampDonkey]

I would go with large tooth aspen, I've seen it in Virginia in Blacksburgh area. The buds are hairy as are the spring leaves that emerge, later becoming hairless and the fall foliage is orange-red and yellow. Bark has a pinkish hue and often mottled with white blotches. A lot prettier tree in my opinion. Same growth habits as mentioned for trembling. It does reach further south into the Tenn. mountains and tends to grow on the drier sites. Seems more resistant to cankers as well, except on old burn sites and very dry sites. Up here it doesn't form large pure stands like trembling does. It usually grows in groups of small acreages. You can pick them out of the hardwood forest with their spring downy foliage, looks like it's in flower from a distance. Flowering is usually done before leaf out and silk from the fruit (capsules) fills the air when leaves are out. Later to leaf out than trembling.

[SwampDonkey]

May I present to you Populus grandidentata, largetooth, bigtooth aspen.



Spaced large tooth aspen mixed in hardwood. White blotched bark.



Fall foliage.



Canopy of 32 inch tree.



Bark of old tree, still has the white blotches.

[SwampDonkey]

Pubescent spring leaves emerge.




Large tooth on a hardwood ridge with pubescent spring leaves.

Grows mainly from the NE US and Maritimes, along the Great Lake States, southern Ontario and Quebec and Eastern North Dakota and SE Manitoba along the Red River, follows the Blue Ridge Mountains into Tenn.

[mad murdock]

We called it popple where I grew up.  Thousands upon thousands of them.  Until Proctor and Gamble started importing South American craft, they used to use aspen as the sole source of fibre for Charmin tp.  Remember Mr. Whipple "don't squeeze the charmin"!  It grows prolifically on its own, is a good wood for some uses.  I built a dog sled in high school from Yellow Aspen or Populus Giganticus, (big tooth), and found the wood to be very workable, and steam formed the runners, handle and front bow from solid 1"+thick strips with no cracking, it was wonderful wood to work for steam forming, and was really strong.  The sled weighed 15 pounds and could carry 400.  As far as use for firewood, we usually burned through 10 cords ( 1 log truck load per year), We decided to burn popple one winter because it was less expensive than hardwood, and we went through 30 cords.  We called it "gopher or rather go-fer" wood, you get some and go fer more, it burns too fast and if it is not well seasoned you can count on some real barn burner chimney fires!  It makes a real nice tongue and groove paneling for its blonde color as opposed to the more darker hues of most other hardwoods.
Some mills where I grew up cut pallet lumber out of aspen, and one veneer mill used to use it for core material in plywood.

[Radar67]

Thanks for the replies guys.

I've about decided not to plant them. I will look into the big tooth aspen some more though.

The cypress are looking better each day.  ;)

[mdvaden]

You will never catch me planting tremuloides at my home, nor in a landscape design. I'm not sure if I'd even try it if we had some big acreage.

It seems best suited to the wild out here.

The gold autumn color is what I like best about that tree.

[Stephen Alford]

Hey all; just thought I would mention that this family of trees has a love for water and if located near septic systems they can really do some damage.