Family Semi-deserts, foothills. A young stand of Populus fremontii in early spring. Family Semi-deserts, foothills. If it is a tree in the semi-desert canyon washes of the Colorado Plateau, it is almost certainly Populus fremontii.
All hikers know it as a body-saving relief from the unbroken sun of canyon summer.
Often growing to several feet in diameter with a twisted even fallen growth pattern, these Cottonwoods can be seen along dry washes, canyon bottoms, and mesa meadows. Their heart-shaped leaves clatter noisily in the slightest breeze. Family Semi-deserts, foothills. Trunks of older trees are typically gray and deeply furrowed, commonly leaning, sometimes even sprawled along the ground. Orange tinted bark occurs occasionally.