There is a tree that is well-adapted to life on the prairie, however. You can recognize it from afar during the growing season by the shiny leaves that shimmer and shake in the wind. The pioneers were always glad to spot one of these trees in the distance, since it offered the possibility of wood and shade. It also represented the chance of finding water, since this species likes to keep its feet wet, so to speak. That species is the cottonwood tree.
Cottonwoods can be either male or female.
It is the fluffy white seeds produced by the females during early summer that give the tree its name. The seeds are very small, 1mm wide by 4 mm long, which is quite remarkable considering that they can become one of the largest trees in North America, up to 100 ft. high with massive trunks over 5 ft. in diameter. Trees had to survive prairie fires in order to live on the Great Plains. Cottonwoods did this by typically growing on the edges of rivers and streams and by developing a very thick, corky bark upon maturity. As their seeds are dispersed by the wind, many end up landing on the surface of water and are then stranded along the waterline on sandbars, islands and river banks.