# Is this a poplar seedling ?



## WWBee (Jun 18, 2015)

yes


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## G3farms (Jun 13, 2009)

yes


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## BeeMoose (Oct 19, 2013)

Because I am bored I will answer with a third yes. I have planted two of them in my backyard for my bees. I also have one that is over 50' tall next to the bee yard they love.


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## enjambres (Jun 30, 2013)

Yes, it is a Tulip Poplar (_Liriodendron tulipfera_). 

But do not try to transplant it now, if that's what you had a mind to do. Mark it and wait until early next spring, before it leafs out. And then dig it with a large, undisturbed ball of soil. Tulip poplars have fat, somewhat brittle, unbranching roots that don't transplant very easily. But they can be lifted and moved. I have tulip trees I moved from my Mother's farm in VA to NY. 

One trick I have used when lifting small trees is to take a large plastic shopping bag (sometimes you need the size bigger than grocery sacks) out to the woods with me. Once you have the tree free, but still in its hole, you can slide the bag down and under it, until the root ball is in the bag. Then tie the handles of the bag tightly around the ball at the level of the top of soil. Sometimes you have to cut the bag to get it as tightly as you can around the root ball. Don't injure the trunk, though. Then lift the root ball by lifting the bag. Never pull on the trunk or stem of the tree to lift it. If you need more lifting help slide a second plastic bag underneath. You can temporarily (1 -2 days) keep the tree in the plastic bag if you cut some drainage holes, water it thoroughly and keep it in the shade. To plant it, dig a good hole, at least as big as the root mass, and _set the tree in it still in the plastic bag_. Then cut the bag and slide the remnants out from under and back fill the hole. Water very well to settle the soil around the roots, and plan on watering once a day for a couple of weeks, then once a week for a couple of months.

Plant tulip polars in rich soil, in full sun, in an area with good soil moisture, but not boggy or flood prone. Expect it to grow very, very tall eventually, so not near power lines, etc., it needs a good deal of room. It will probably not flower for 15-20 years.

Lucky you to have found a small seedling. Be prepared, though to discover that it is a stump sprout from a dead tree, and thus not a seedling. If it is a stump sprout, its root system will be too big to move, and unlike some other species you can't really whack it off and expect it to grow more roots. 

Enj.


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## jrose1970 (Apr 1, 2014)

They are one of my favorite trees! I have one that forks and one fork is 38" in diameter!! There are no limbs on






it for 60 feet!


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## johnwratcliff (Feb 24, 2015)

they are fun trees. my kids love to climb them and fortunately my bees have access to dozens of them where my bees are. the land owner planted a couple dozen several years ago plus he had several mature ones on site already.


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## jjohnsind (Apr 24, 2014)

No need to plant around here - very plentiful! Another benefit? Great place to find morel mushrooms.


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## tech.35058 (Jul 29, 2013)

Thanks for all the detailed responses ... unfortunately, they are sheltering among my scrap pile, which has to be moved "someday".
They are truly seedlings only a foot tall or so, probably some smaller. nothing but grass there when I stored my scrap.
The seeds had to come from some where, so there is at least one flowering specimen around.


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## jrose1970 (Apr 1, 2014)

Well, that's all I do is tinker. I've accidentally learned a few things though. Hang in there. Poplar is a big flow here in the mountains.
Sourwood is another one. Our bees are forest dwellers, so they rely more on trees than grasses and herbs.


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## EvanS (Feb 27, 2015)

We have a small tulip poplar right be our hive. Unfortunately for the tree, it is infected with scale bugs and it is loosing sap. But, my bees love it. They are on it all the time collecting for propolis.


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## bugmeister (Feb 26, 2013)

enjambres- great technique for 'bagging' a transplant! thanks! B


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