Cottonwoods are large, fast-growing trees (over 100 ft tall) that grow best in floodplains and beside lakes and rivers where there is plenty of water. Male and female catkins appear in early spring before the leaves. The trees release so many fluffy white seeds in early summer that you may think it's snowing.
Cottonwoods have triangular leaves with toothed edges that turn yellow in the fall. The trunk is broad and white. The branches are weak and often break in a windstorm.
Plains Cottonwoods grow in the west, while Eastern Cottonwoods are found in the east. Black Cottonwoods are very similar to Balsam Poplars. They can be hard to tell apart as they hybridize.
Could it be? Balsam Poplars and Aspens resemble Cottonwoods as they are members of the same family. All of them release loose cottony seeds in late spring. Both Cottonwoods and Trembling Aspens have triangular or heart-shaped leaves, but Cottonwoods are usually taller and their leaves are slightly serrated. Balsam Poplars have oval or spear-shaped leaves.
Did you know? Cottonwoods are the fastest-growing trees in North America, adding 3-6 ft to their height in a single year.
