Quaking Aspen
(Populus tremuloides)

The Quaking Aspen has small, oval-shaped leaves that are shiny dark green on the front and dull gray-green on the back. This coloring causes the leaves to look like they are trembling or "quaking" when the wind blows. The leaves also have small teeth around the edges.

Aspen can clone themselves by sending out suckers. In some areas of Minnesota, cloned aspens have been found that are over 8,000 years old.

The trunk and bark of the quaking aspen is usually a light gray, white, or yellowish color. Sometimes aspen is mistaken for a paper birch tree, but the aspen's bark is smoother and doesn't peel. The trunk also has dark circular spots, called beards, where the branches shoot out of the trunk.

Quaking aspen grow throughout the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, as well as Northern
Wisconsin and Minnesota. They can be found in many types of soils and ecosystems, but are especially common in areas that have been burned by fire or cleared by logging. They grow quickly, reaching a height of 50-70 feet, but only live to be about 60-70 years.

Aspens develop long flowers in the spring to help them reproduce. They also spread by sending out suckers. This means that several trees share the same root system.

Aspen foliage is a favorite food of the White-tail deer and an essential part of the Northern Upland Forest ecosystem.

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