Our fearless leader, Hank Ortiz, is spending some time in Colorado this week, so ArborNote’s Tree of the Week is the Quaking Aspen (Populus tremuloides). The Quaking Aspen is a widespread and iconic tree in Colorado, known for its vibrant fall foliage and the distinctive trembling of its leaves in the breeze. The common name is “quaking aspen”, because its leaves are specially designed to flutter in the wind due to their flat, thin stems. Some botanists theorize that the fluttering action results in greater ability to photosynthesize. It is the most common deciduous tree in Colorado, covering about 5 million acres, or roughly 20% of the state’s forests! A stand of aspen trees is actually one giant organism, a large clonal colony which has reproduced from a single seed and spread by root suckers. When the sun falls on earth and warms the soil, it stimulates the clone to send up suckers which become full-grown trees. So what looks like a stand of individual trees, is actually one genetic individual which can cover hundreds of acres and weigh thousands of tons. In fact aspen clonal colonies are Colorado’s largest living organism!