Trembling aspen – description, flowering period and general distribution in Alberta. rounded young leaves

Trembling aspen – description, flowering period and general distribution in Alberta. long catkins hanging from a branch

Trembling aspen – description, flowering period and general distribution in Alberta. big tree crown

Trembling aspen – description, flowering period and general distribution in Alberta. Aspen-shaped poplar - the most widespread tree in North America

Trembling aspen – description, flowering period and general distribution in Alberta. autumn grove

Common name:

Trembling aspen

Scientific name:

Populus tremuloides.

Other common name(s):

Quaking aspen, Trembling aspen, Aspen, American aspen, Mountain aspen, Golden aspen, Trembling poplar, White poplar, Popple, Alamo Blanco.

Life form:

Tree.

Flowering time:

no data.

Flowering period

in Alberta for this plant is: April ↔ May.

NECTAR PRODUCTION:

Minor

SOURCE FOR HONEY BEES:

Minor

General distribution:

Quaking aspen is native to and the most widely distributed tree in North America. It occurs from Newfoundland west to Alaska and south to Virginia, Missouri, Nebraska, and northern Mexico. A few scattered populations occur farther south in Mexico to Guanajuato. Quaking aspen is distributed fairly continuously in the East. Distribution is patchy in the West, with trees confined to suitable sites. Density is greatest in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Colorado, and Alaska; each of those states contains at least 2 million acres of commercial quaking aspen forest. Maine, Utah, and central Canada also have large acreages of quaking aspen.

Map of distribution and habitat in Canada

This plant is present in at least 53 states/provinces in this country.

See The Map

Botanical description:

Quaking aspen is a native deciduous tree. It is small- to medium-sized, typically less than 48 feet (15 m) in height and 16 inches (40 cm) dbh. It has spreading branches and a pyramidal or rounded crown. The bark is thin. Leaves are orb- to ovately shaped, with flattened petioles. The fruit is a tufted capsule bearing six to eight seeds. A single female catkin usually bears 70 to 100 capsules. The root system is relatively shallow, with wide-spreading lateral roots and vertical sinker roots descending from the laterals. Laterals may extend over 100 feet (30 m) into open areas.

Quaking aspen forms clones connected by a common parent root system. It is typically dioecious, with a given clone being either male or female. Some clones produce both stamens and pistils, however.

Seasonal development:

Quaking aspen catkins elongate before the leaves expand.

In New England, catkins appear in mid-March to April; in the central Rockies, flowering occurs in May to June. Sustained air temperatures above 54 degrees Fahrenheit (12 deg C) for about 6 days apparently trigger flowering. At high elevation, trees may flower before snow is off the ground.

Female trees generally flower and leaf out before male trees.

Local clonal variation produces early- and late-flowering clones of either sex, however.

Catkins mature in 4 to 6 weeks (usually in May or June).

Branches usually leaf out from early May to June.

Seed dispersal in the Great Lakes States occurs from early May to mid-June, beginning earliest on protected sites and in southern portions of the region.

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List of honey plants that may be blooming now in Alberta

See the entire list

Acer negundo (aka: Boxelder, Western boxelder, Arizona boxelder, California boxelder, Texas boxelder, Interior boxelder, Violet boxelder)

Acer glabrum (aka: Rocky Mountain maple, Douglas maple, Greene's maple, New Mexico maple, Torrey maple)

Salix lucida (aka: Shining willow, Greenleaf willow, Tail-leaf willow, Whiplash willow, Pacific willow, Lance-leaf willow, Longleaf willow, Red willow, Western shining willow)

Salix exigua (aka: Narrowleaf willow, Coyote willow)

Crataegus douglasii (aka: Black hawthorn, Douglas hawthorn, River hawthorn, Western thornapple)

Populus tremuloides (aka: Quaking aspen, Trembling aspen, Aspen, American aspen, Mountain aspen, Golden aspen, Trembling poplar, White poplar, Popple, Alamo Blanco)

Salix scouleriana (aka: Scouler's willow, Upland willow)

Salix arbusculoides (aka: Littletree willow)

Salix bebbiana (aka: Bebb willow, Beak willow, Beaked willow, Long-beaked willow, Diamond willow, Chaton, Petit Minou, Smooth Bebb willow)

Salix discolor (aka: Pussy willow, American pussy willow, Glaucous willow, Large pussy willow)

Salix amygdaloides (aka: Peachleaf willow, Peach leaf willow)

Salix drummondiana (aka: Drummond's willow, Beautiful willow, Blue willow)

Salix planifolia (aka: Diamondleaf willow, Planeleaf willow)

Astragalus (aka: Milkvetch, Locoweed, Goat's-thorn)

Salix boothii (aka: Booth's willow)

Salix alaxensis (aka: Feltleaf willow, Alaska willow)

Rubus idaeus (aka: Raspberry, Black-haired red raspberry, Brilliant red raspberry, American red raspberry, Red raspberry, Smoothleaf red raspberry, Wild raspberry, Wild red raspberry, Grayleaf raspberry)

Rhus glabra (aka: Smooth sumac, Common sumac, Rocky Mountain sumac, Red sumac, Western sumac, White sumac)

Salix lutea (aka: Yellow willow)

Allium schoenoprasum (aka: Chives)

Brassica napus (aka: Rapeseed)

Sinapis arvensis (aka: Charlock mustard, California rape, Charlock, Corn mustard, Canola, Kaber mustard, Rapeseed mustard)

Prunus pensylvanica (aka: Pin cherry, Fire cherry, Bird cherry)

Prunus virginiana (aka: Chokecherry, Western chokecherry, Common chokecherry, Black chokecherry)

Rhamnus cathartica (aka: Common buckthorn, European buckthorn, Dahurian buckthorn)