Several of these are clear of branches for 80 feet. A big tree in the Great Smokey Mountains of Tennessee is only 150 feet but has a trunk over eight feet in diameter. This is a tree of great color. The leaves are glossy dark green on top, paler beneath. The tree grows rapidly and maintains itself remarkably free of decay.
Young trees have a typically conical crown which becomes a broadly spreading head on mature trees.
The sapwood of yellow-poplar is quite wide in second growth trees and is pale, creamy white. Boards of all sapwood are common, giving the wood the whitewood name. Heartwood has more character with lots of color and significant color variation from tree to tree. Pale green, yellow-green, canary yellow, brown and tan are common. Most of the green and yellow color fades with time or exposure to the sun to become shades of tan or brown.