Twigs/buds: Twigs yellow-brown and angular. Terminal buds 3/4" long, pointed, shiny-brown, resinous, fragrant when crushed.

Bark: Light green, smooth on young trunks; on older trunks thick, gray, deeply furrowed with flat-topped ridges.

Wood: Fairly unimportant. See eastern cottonwood for description.

General: Native from about the Wasatch Front south including lower-elevation river drainages (Green and Colorado) in southern Utah and throughout the Southwest. Usually found naturally along streams.

Landscape Use: Rarely used and cultivars are not available, but it is a good, large cottonwood that would be worth having in the right setting. Zones 5-9.

Comments & Limitations:

- Weak wood and/or branch structure.
- Prefers abundant water.

Range map from Digital Atlas of the Vascular Plants of Utah