Aspen and birch poplar are among the poplar species represented in Central Europe. In many ways the two are quite similar and are not easy to tell apart from a distance. But if you look closely, you can identify them.
What is the difference between aspen and birch poplar?
Aspen and birch poplar differ in bark color, leaf shape and location: Aspens change from yellowish brown to dark gray-brown, have wavy lobed or triangular leaves and prefer light locations, while birch poplars have gray bark, finely serrated, birch-like leaves and locations close to water.
What's similar
The poplar species found in our latitudes can usually be distinguished from one another to some extent by their habitus. For example, the black poplar has a much larger and oak-like, gnarled appearance, while the balsam poplar is smaller and has a softer, more upward crown silhouette.
The habitus of the quaking aspen and the birch poplar is quite similar, so that the two can be confused from a distance. Both have an elliptical to conical and irregularly branched crown that sets quite low. The two are also largely the same size in height at 15 to 25 meters. Aspen and birch poplar can only be identified with certainty when you get closer to the tree.
The distinguishing features
There are clear differences between aspen and birch poplar in the following categories:
- Bark
- leaves
- Location
Bark
Both species have a smoother bark when they are young and a more furrowed bark when they are older. However, the color is slightly different: the aspen bark is initially yellowish-brown and turns into a dark gray-brown over the years. The bark of the birch poplar has a distinctly gray color, initially in a lighter tone and as it ages it becomes darker.
leaves
The two types of poplar can be distinguished most clearly by their leaves. However, there is also a small stumbling block here. The aspen produces two differently shaped leaf types early and later in the year. However, the early ones on the long shoots are very characteristic and unmistakable with their wide, small-round and wavy lobed shape on the outside. The later summer leaves of the short shoots are clearly triangular and almost smooth at the edge.
The birch poplar has leaves that are quite birch-like - hence the name. They have an elliptical to inverted egg-shaped contour and are finely serrated on the edge.
Location
You can also determine with relative certainty whether you are looking at an aspen or a birch poplar based on where you are. The two prefer quite different locations. Aspens are light-loving and like to grow in clearcuts, roadsides and rock dumps. Birch poplars, on the other hand, prefer to be close to water and are more likely to be found in floodplains and riparian groves.
