Poplar (cottonwood) — PRAIRIE GOLD®
Populus tremuloides
Poplar (cottonwood) — PRAIRIE GOLD® (Populus tremuloides) is a tree suited to the Colorado Front Range, rated "Conditionally Recommended" on the 2024 Front Range Tree Recommendation List. It matures to about 30–40 ft tall and 15–25 ft wide, and needs medium water. Aspen struggles below ~7,500 ft on the plains — heat stress, sunscald, Cytospora canker, and borers (oystershell scale, poplar borer) cause decline. It's a montane native; performs poorly as a single landscape specimen at lower elevations.
medium water30–40 ft tall and 15–25 ft wideDeer-resistant
Photos
At a glance
- Rating
- Conditionally Recommended
- Botanical name
- Populus tremuloides
- Variety / cultivar
- PRAIRIE GOLD®
- Type
- Tree
- Mature size
- 30–40 ft tall and 15–25 ft wide
- Water needs
- medium water
- Colorado native
- No
- Foliage
- Deciduous
- Soil
- clay, loam, sandy
- Soil pH
- 6.0–8.2
- Hail tolerance
- low
- Wind tolerance
- low
- Salt tolerance
- moderate
- Good for
- slope
Site factors to consider
- Critical: Cold Hardiness
- Watch: Short Lived
- Watch: Suckers
Frequently asked questions
- Is Poplar (cottonwood) — PRAIRIE GOLD® good for the Colorado Front Range?
- Yes. Poplar (cottonwood) — PRAIRIE GOLD® is included in the Front Range Plant Finder as a tree suited to Colorado's Front Range, rated "Conditionally Recommended" on the 2024 Front Range Tree Recommendation List.
- How big does Poplar (cottonwood) — PRAIRIE GOLD® get?
- It matures to about 30–40 ft tall and 15–25 ft wide.
- How much water does Poplar (cottonwood) — PRAIRIE GOLD® need?
- It needs medium water once established.
- Is Poplar (cottonwood) — PRAIRIE GOLD® native to Colorado?
- No — it is not a Colorado native, but it grows well on the Front Range.
Find Poplar (cottonwood) — PRAIRIE GOLD® near you
See also
Related trees
Poplar (cottonwood) — Narrowleaf
Populus angustifolia
Poplar (cottonwood) — Eastern
Populus deltoides
Poplar (cottonwood) — Plains 'Jeronimus'
Populus deltoides subsp. monilifera
Poplar (cottonwood) — Upright European, Aspen
Populus tremula 'Erecta'
Poplar (cottonwood) — Quaking Aspen
Populus tremuloides
Poplar (cottonwood) — Lanceleaf
Populus x acuminata