white poplar
(Populus alba)
Overview
- Appearance
- Populus alba is a tree that can grow 40-80 ft. (12.2-24.4 m) tall and 40-50 ft. (12.2-15.2 m) wide. The bark on young trees is smooth and greenish white becoming gray and wrinkled, as trees age.
- Foliage
- The leaves resemble maple leaves, but the topside of leaves are shiny, dark green while the underside is bright white and hairy. Leaves are 2-4 in. (5.1-10.2 cm) long.
- Flowers
- Flowers are inconspicuous and develop in slim, cylindrical flower clusters (catkins) before the leaves develop.
- Fruit
- Fruit are small, hairy seed pods that are spread by wind.
- Ecological Threat
- Branches are susceptible to breakage when under stress, such as heavy snow or ice. Trees produce prolific rootsprouts. Populus alba is native to Eurasia and grows best in full sun.
Resources
- Weeds Gone Wild: Alien Plant Invaders of Natural Areas - Plant Conservation Alliance
- Weed of the Week - USDA Forest Service
Selected Images
Maps
EDDMapS Distribution - This map is incomplete and is based only on current site and county level reports made by experts, herbaria, and literature. For more information, visit www.eddmaps.org
State List - This map identifies those states that list this species on their invasive species list or law. For more information, visit Invasive.org
Invasive Listing Sources
- City of Ann Arbor Michigan Parks and Recreation
- Connecticut Invasive Plant List
- Connecticut Invasive Plant Working Group
- Connecticut Noxious Weeds
- Hoffman, R. & K. Kearns, Eds. 1997. Wisconsin manual of control recommendations for ecologically invasive plants. Wisconsin Dept. Natural Resources, Bureau of Endangered Resources. Madison, Wisconsin. 102pp.
- Invasive Plant Association of Wisconsin
- Invasive Plant Species of West Virginia
- Jil M. Swearingen, Survey of invasive plants occurring on National Park Service lands, 2000-2007
- John Randall, The Nature Conservancy, Survey of TNC Preserves, 1995.
- Kentucky Exotic Pest Plant Council - Significant Threat
- Maine Invasive Plants
- National Park Service, Mid-Atlantic Exotic Plant Management Team Invasive Plant List
- Native Plant Society of Oregon, 2008
- New Hampshire Invasive Plant Species Watch List
- New Jersey Invasive Species Strike Team 2017 Invasive Species List
- Non-Native Invasive Plants of Arlington County, Virginia
- Nonnative Invasive Species in Southern Forest and Grassland Ecosystems
- Reichard, Sarah. 1994. Â Assessing the potential of invasiveness in woody plants introduced in North America. University of Washington Ph.D. dissertation.
- Rhode Island Natural History Survey
- South Carolina Exotic Pest Plant Council
- Virginia Invasive Plant Species List
- WeedUS - Database of Plants Invading Natural Areas in the United States
- West Virginia Native Plant Society, Flora West Virginia Project, and West Virginia Curatorial Database System, September 3, 1999
- Wisconsin Noxious Weeds
- Wisconsin's Invasive species rule – NR 40
Taxonomic Rank
| Kingdom: Plantae |
| Phylum: Magnoliophyta |
| Class: Magnoliopsida |
| Subclass: Dilleniidae |
| Order: Salicales |
| Family: Salicaceae |
| Genus: Populus |
| Subject: Populus alba L. |