130239 Grey Poplar Populus x canescens (Salicaceae) HEIGHT to 37m
Stable hybrid between White Poplar and Aspen. When fully mature, grows into an impressively large tree with a good solid bole. In spring the tree has a whitish appearance when the wind displaces the leaves, but it is not as brilliantly white as the White Poplar. BARK Whitish with diamond-shaped fissures. LEAVES Rounded to oval and toothed with regular blunt, forward-pointing teeth; borne on long petioles. Leaf upper surface is glossy grey-green and lower surface is covered with a greyish-white felt. By mid- to late summer the leaves lose some of the white felt and the tree looks greyer. REPRODUCTIVE PARTS Male and female catkins are borne on separate trees. Fe¬male trees with green, pendulous catkins are rare. Male catkins are elongated and pendulous, giving whole tree a purplish col¬our when they swell before opening in spring. STATUS AND DISTRIBUTION Native of mainland Europe and introduced into Britain very early, probably with the White Poplar.
