This green layer of the bark makes it survival food for deer and elk during hard winters.Īspens can be identified by their smooth, white bark marked by black scars.īecause of their vegetative reproduction, aspens are in no danger of going extinct. The other aspect of their lifestyle that makes them unique is that beneath the thin white outer bark is a thin photosynthetic green layer that allows the plant to synthesize sugars and keep growing even during the winter when all other deciduous trees go into dormancy. The largest known clone in existence is called "Pando" and is located in the Fishlake National Forest north of Bryce Canyon National Park in central Utah. Aspen "clones," as the individual root systems are called, can live to be thousands of years old. By examining this different color patchwork along a mountainside you can distinguish individual clones from each other.Īsexual or vegetative reproduction from root systems offers many benefits including phenomenal longevity. Members of different clones will all have the same shade of color transitioning from green to yellow at the same time.
Even easier and more obvious is to watch as aspen forests change color in the fall. With careful inspection, clones can be mapped, as all the trees that sprout from a single clone will have the same branching structure because they are genetically identical to one another. Only after severe fire and under ideal climatic conditions, will aspen reproduce sexually as a flowering plant. This is called "vegetative" or asexual reproduction. Then the roots sprout up white things called trunks that then leaf off green things called leaves. Think of aspens as large 1-20 acre systems of roots that remain hidden underground until there's enough sunlight. First of all, a stand of aspen is really only one huge organism where the main life force is underground. In fact they are so different that it may be better not to think of aspens as trees.
Whereas aspen leaves are perfectly flat, birch leaves are slightly "V" shaped and more elongated than Quaking Aspen leaves.Īspen are remarkable and unique trees. Birch are famous for having bark that peels back like paper aspen bark does not peel. Although aspen are somewhat similar in appearance to some species of birch, birch trees belong to an entirely different family of trees. Quaking Aspens are often confused with birch trees. The only absolute requirement for Quaking Aspen is lots of sunlight. They prefer moist soil, but can grow near intermittent springs in desert environments that receive less then 7 inches of annual precipitation. Quaking Aspens grow in large and dense colonies throughout North America enduring lows of -78° F and highs of 110° F. In the fall leaves turn yellow, gold, and in rare instances, even red. In the spring and summer, leaves are glossy green on the upper surface and dull green underneath.
This gives the overall tree the appearance that it is quaking or trembling - hence the common name Quaking Aspen and the scientific name's specific epithet - tremuloides. The leaves attach to branches via a long and flattened petiole, so that even the slightest breeze causes the leaves to flutter. Quaking Aspen leaves are somewhat heart shaped, with finely saw-toothed margins and range in size from 1.25-3" (3-8 cm) long. Aspens can be identified by their smooth, white bark marked by black scars where lower branches are naturally self-pruned.
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