Habitat and Range
Like all members of the Willow Family, Aspen requires a wet or moist soil. Find this tree on valley floors, slopes, and creekside habitats between 4000 ft and 10,000 ft in all latitudes of the Sierra.
Physical Description
Quaking Aspen is a deciduous tree that can grow up to 70 ft tall. It has white bark when young that becomes gray and furrowed with age. The leaves are truncate (flat) at the base and otherwise heart-shaped. The petiole (leaf-stem) is flattened in cross-section which makes the leaf flutter in the wind (hence the common and scientific names). The quaking leaves sound like falling water. The inflorescence is a catkin of flowers that totals 2 inches in length. For winter identification: when the leaves have fallen, there is a swelling below each leaf scar on the stem where the leaf once hung. The winter bud is shiny.
Food Uses
The inner bark, or cambium, is edible raw or cooked. Dried, sliced into strips, and treated like pasta, aspen can be a nourishing meal. This is a survival food and is by no means choice. Leaving unsightly scars on such a beautiful tree just to sample nature's wild harvest is unnecessary. Please limit use or reserve for emergencies only.
Medicinal Uses
Poultices made from the leaf and root of related species (P. fremontii) have been effective in relieving muscle strains.
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