Populus trichocarpa

Black cottonwood

Family: Salicaceae · Type: tree · Native

Black cottonwood is a native tree found in California's Foothill Woodlands and Great Basin bioregions along alluvial bottomlands and streamsides at elevations of 5 to 3,050 meters. Flowering from February to April, this tree produces flowers with subtle coloration characteristic of its species. Growing up to 30 meters tall with a wide, spreading crown, it features brown twigs that turn gray with age and remarkably fragrant, resinous winter buds. Its distinctive leaves are 3 to 7 centimeters long, ranging from narrowly to widely ovate, with a green upper surface and glaucous lower surface often stained with brown resin, featuring finely scalloped margins and rounded to heart-shaped bases. The tree's winter buds are especially notable for being finely ciliate and releasing a distinctive fragrance when they open.

Habitat: Scattered. Alluvial bottomland, streamsides

Bloom period: Feb-Apr

Elevation: 5-3050 m

Bioregions: CA-FP, GB

California counties: Los Angeles, Ventura, San Bernardino, Santa Barbara, Kern, Riverside, El Dorado, Tulare, Inyo, Plumas, Sierra, Stanislaus, Mono, Fresno, San Luis Obispo, Mariposa, Orange, Humboldt, Placer, San Mateo, Siskiyou, Santa Clara, Madera, Sonoma, Monterey, San Diego, Santa Cruz, Lassen, San Benito, Modoc, Nevada, Shasta, Del Norte, Mendocino, Contra Costa, Tuolumne, Alameda, Alpine, Tehama, Butte, Trinity, Lake, Amador, Napa

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.