Leaf guide › Aspens & poplars
Quaking aspen
Populus tremuloides
The gold of the Rockies. Whole mountainsides of aspen turn at once because the trees are clones.
Updated
- Fall color
- YellowOrange
- Turns
- Early in the West, mid-season in the East
- Leaves
- Alternate (one per spot)
- Size
- 1.5–3 in. across
- Found in
- Rockies, Great Lakes & North Woods, New England & New York, Southwest, Pacific Northwest
How to recognize it
- Nearly round leaf with a short pointed tip.
- Small, even, rounded teeth along the edge.
- Flat leaf stem makes the leaves tremble in the slightest breeze.
- Smooth white to pale green bark with black scars.
Easy to confuse with
Paper birch
Longer, more pointed leaf with double teeth, and bark that peels in papery sheets.
Cottonwood
Larger, triangular leaf with coarse curved teeth.
Bigtooth aspen
Same shape but with big, coarse teeth.
Worth knowing
An aspen grove is often one organism, sprouting from a single root system. Pando, a grove in Utah covering about 106 acres, is one of the largest living things known.
Common questions
What color does quaking aspen turn in fall?
Quaking aspen turns yellow and orange in fall. The gold of the Rockies. Whole mountainsides of aspen turn at once because the trees are clones.
When does quaking aspen change color?
In the Rockies it’s one of the first trees to turn, often in September. In the East it colors in the middle of the season.
How can you tell quaking aspen from paper birch?
Paper birch: Longer, more pointed leaf with double teeth, and bark that peels in papery sheets. Quaking aspen: Nearly round leaf with a short pointed tip.
Where does quaking aspen grow?
In the lower 48, look for it in Rockies, Great Lakes & North Woods, New England & New York, Southwest, Pacific Northwest.
See where the color is peaking today.
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