balsam poplar
Populus balsamifera · Salicaceae
balsam poplar (Populus balsamifera) is a perennial tree in the Salicaceae family. It is native to North America. USDA records it as hardy in zone 1 and warmer, down to about -79°F.
At a glance
| Type | tree USDA |
|---|---|
| Lifecycle | perennial USDA |
| Native status | native USDA |
| Mature height | 80 ft USDA |
| Light | full-sun USDA |
| Water need | high USDA |
| Growth rate | rapid USDA |
| Soil pH | 4.5–7 USDA |
| Bloom | May–June USDA |
| Flower color | Yellow USDA |
| Hardiness zones | 1 and warmer USDA |
| Guild layer | canopy Derived |
| Nursery availability | Routinely Available USDA |
USDA quoted from the USDA PLANTS database · Derived computed by a fixed rule from those columns. No value on this page is estimated.
Growing conditions
It needs full sun. USDA rates it as having needs consistently moist ground. Its drought tolerance is rated low. It handles periodically wet ground (USDA rates its anaerobic tolerance medium). It is recorded on soils from pH 4.5 to 7 — a broad range that spans acidic through mildly alkaline ground. Its cold limit is zone 1.
Size and growth
At maturity it reaches about 80 ft, making it a large tree that will dominate its site. It grows quickly.
Bloom period
USDA records a bloom period of May through June. Flowers are yellow.
A flowering date, not a pollinator rating.
Foliage, flower and season
Summer foliage is yellow-green, medium in texture. Its flowers are not conspicuous — a plant for form and foliage. Its active growth period is spring and summer. USDA rates its lifespan as moderate.
What the site needs to provide
USDA records it across sites receiving 6 to 70 inches of annual precipitation. The low end of that band is genuinely arid, so it has a wide tolerance for dry country. It needs at least 75 frost-free days to finish its season. It roots to at least 30 inches. Fertility requirement: medium.
Propagating it
It takes readily from seed, cuttings, bare root and container stock. USDA records no cold-stratification requirement, so seed should germinate without a chilling period. Its seed spreads at a moderate rate. It spreads vegetatively at a moderate rate.
Resilience and wildlife
Browsing animals find it moderately palatable, so expect deer and rabbits to take an interest. Its fire tolerance is rated high, and it can resprout after damage. Its growth form is recorded as single stem.
Role in a guild
Canopy. In a layered planting this is the tallest layer of a planting — it sets the light budget everything beneath it lives on. The layer is derived by a fixed rule from growth habit and mature height.
Tags
Related plants
Others in Populus
- white poplar Populus alba
- narrowleaf cottonwood Populus angustifolia
- black cottonwood Populus balsamifera
- Carolina poplar Populus ×canadensis
Similar role and hardiness
- paper birch Betula papyrifera
- tamarack Larix laricina
- lodgepole pine Pinus contorta
- white spruce Picea glauca
- black spruce Picea mariana
Where this data comes from
Every value on this page comes from the USDA PLANTS database record for symbol POBA2, or is computed from those values by a fixed rule. Nothing here is estimated or model-generated. Where USDA publishes no value, this page omits the claim rather than filling the gap.
- Quoted from USDA PLANTS: active growth period, Bloom, Bloom end, browse palatability, cold stratification, Drought tolerance, fall conspicuous, fertility requirement, fire tolerance, Flower color, flower conspicuous, foliage color, foliage porosity winter, foliage texture, frost free days min, fruit conspicuous, growth form, Growth rate, Hardiness zones, Lifecycle, lifespan, Light, Mature height, Minimum temperature, Native status, Nitrogen fixation, Nursery availability, precipitation max in, precipitation min in, propagation, resprout ability, root depth in, seed spread rate, Soil pH, Soil pH (upper), Tolerance of wet soil, Toxicity, Type, vegetative spread rate, Water need.
- Derived by a fixed rule from those columns: Guild layer.
Read our full data sources and methodology.
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