More Black Cottonwood bits. I’m having a a really hard time finding information on how to tell the difference between the male and female trees/buds/catkins. Cottonwoods are dioecious, meaning each tree only produces flowers of one sex. It’s member of the willow family and frequently sprouts from roots and fallen branches that are flooded, meaning that large stands can be clones. The trees are so tall that most of the buds are far out of hands reach. Last week I found what I thought was a bud, but on further inspection might actually be a kind of bud gall mite. Only time will tell with the flowering, I guess!
28 February 2018
It seems like you’re learning so much along the way, though! This is an awesome study.
More Black Cottonwood bits. I’m having a a really hard time finding information on how to tell the difference between the male and female trees/buds/catkins. Cottonwoods are dioecious, meaning each tree only produces flowers of one sex. It’s member of the willow family and frequently sprouts from roots and fallen branches that are flooded, meaning that large stands can be clones. The trees are so tall that most of the buds are far out of hands reach. Last week I found what I thought was a bud, but on further inspection might actually be a kind of bud gall mite. Only time will tell with the flowering, I guess!
It seems like you’re learning so much along the way, though! This is an awesome study.