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Wildlife, Animals, and Plants
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Introductory
SPECIES: Liriodendron tulipifera | Yellow-Poplar
ABBREVIATION :
LIRTUL
SYNONYMS :
NO-ENTRY
SCS PLANT CODE :
LITU
COMMON NAMES :
yellow-poplar
blue-poplar
tulip-poplar
tuliptree
yellow wood
TAXONOMY :
The currently accepted scientific name of yellow-poplar is Liriodendron
tulipifera L. (Magnoliaceae) [30]. Recognized varieties and forms are
as follows [28]:
L. t. var. fastigiatum (L.) Jaeq.
L. t. var. obtusilobum (L.) Michx.
L. t. forma aureomarginatum Schwerin
L. t. forma integrifolium Kirchr.
LIFE FORM :
Tree
FEDERAL LEGAL STATUS :
No special status
OTHER STATUS :
NO-ENTRY
COMPILED BY AND DATE :
Randy Scott Griffith, September 1991.
LAST REVISED BY AND DATE :
NO-ENTRY
AUTHORSHIP AND CITATION :
Griffith, Randy Scott. 1991. Liriodendron tulipifera. In: Remainder of Citation
DISTRIBUTION AND OCCURRENCE
SPECIES: Liriodendron tulipifera | Yellow-Poplar
GENERAL DISTRIBUTION :
Yellow-poplar inhabits eastern North America. The species ranges from
Vermont, west through southern Ontario and Michigan, south to Louisiana,
and east to northern Florida [1,2].
ECOSYSTEMS :
FRES10 White - red - jack pine
FRES13 Loblolly - shortleaf pine
FRES14 Oak - pine
FRES15 Oak - hickory
FRES16 Oak - gum - cypress
FRES18 Maple - beech - birch
STATES :
AL AR CT DE FL GA IL IN KY LA
MD MA MI MS MO NJ NY NC OH PA
RI SC TN VT VA WV ON
ADMINISTRATIVE UNITS :
ALPO ANTI BISO BLRI CAHA CATO
CHCH COLO COSW CUGA DEWA FOCA
FODO GATE GWMP GRSM HOBE HOSP
INDU MACA MANA MORR NATR NERI
OBRI PRWI RICH ROCR SHEN SHIL
VAFO
BLM PHYSIOGRAPHIC REGIONS :
NO-ENTRY
KUCHLER PLANT ASSOCIATIONS :
K081 Oak savanna
K082 Mosaic of K074 and K100
K084 Cross Timbers
K089 Black Belt
K090 Live oak - sea oats
K091 Cypress savanna
K095 Great Lakes pine forest
K099 Maple - basswood forest
K100 Oak - hickory forest
K102 Beech - maple forest
K103 Mixed mesophytic forest
K104 Appalachian oak forest
K106 Northern hardwoods
K107 Northern hardwoods - fir forest
K108 Northern hardwoods - spruce forest
K109 Transition between K104 and K106
K110 Northeastern oak - pine forest
K111 Oak - hickory - pine forest
K112 Southern mixed forest
K114 Pocosin
K115 Sand pine scrub
SAF COVER TYPES :
21 Eastern white pine
22 White pine
51 White pine - chestnut oak
52 White oak - black oak - northern red oak
53 White oak
55 Northern red oak
57 Yellow poplar
58 Yellow poplar - eastern hemlock
59 Yellow poplar - white oak - northern red oak
60 Beech - sugar maple
64 Sassafras - persimmon
81 Loblolly pine
82 Loblolly pine - hardwood
87 Sweet gum - yellow poplar
91 Swamp chestnut oak - cherrybark oak
SRM (RANGELAND) COVER TYPES :
NO-ENTRY
HABITAT TYPES AND PLANT COMMUNITIES :
NO-ENTRY
VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Liriodendron tulipifera | Yellow-Poplar
WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE :
Yellow-poplar wood is used for construction grade lumber and plywood
[1]. It has straight grain, little shrinkage, and excellent gluing
qualitites [2]. In the past is was used for carriage bodies, shingles,
saddle frames, and interior finish wood. It is currently used for
cabinets, veneer, furniture, and pulp [2]. Yellow-poplar has only fair
value as a fuelwood but good value as kindling [4].
IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE :
Livestock prefer the foliage and stems of yellow-poplar over those of
other tree species. Young trees are often heavily browsed, and
seedlings are frequently eliminated by browsing or trampling [1].
Cattle or other browsers create "browse lines" on older trees [2].
White-tailed deer browse yellow-poplar during all seasons [23].
Northern bobwhites, purple finches, cottontails, red squirrels, gray
squirrels, and white-footed mice consume the samaras [2].
Yellow-bellied sapsuckers use the phloem, and ruby-throated hummingbirds
consume nectar from the flowers [21].
PALATABILITY :
Yellow-poplar has been rated fair in palatability for livestock,
white-tailed deer, small mammals, upland game birds, and songbirds [4].
NUTRITIONAL VALUE :
NO-ENTRY
COVER VALUE :
Yellow-poplars in various stages of growth provide hiding and thermal
cover for white-tailed deer, small mammals, upland game birds,
waterfowl, and nongame birds [21]. They provide habitat for the
endangered red-cockaded woodpecker [15].
VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES :
Yellow-poplar has been planted onto surface coal mine reclamation sites
with variable results, but total failures are rare [7,29]. One-year-old
seedlings planted on sites in Kentucky and Illinois showed good survival
rates (24 percent) for 30 years after planting. Yellow-poplar should be
planted in mixtures with other hardwoods. Yellow-poplar growth under
decadent black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) in Indiana was good. In
eastern Kentucky height growth nearly doubled when yellow-poplar was
interplanted with European alder (Alnus glutinosa) [29]. One-year-old
seedlings are recommended for planting [29].
The lower pH limit for yellow-poplar on acid mine spoils is 4.5 [29].
Liming the spoils before planting has improved yellow-poplar
establisment on acid spoils in Pennsylvania [14].
OTHER USES AND VALUES :
Yellow-poplar has been valued as an ornamental since 1663. The
tuliplike flowers and leaves are aesthetically pleasing [2]. The
flowers are also valuable nectar producers. The flowers from a
20-year-old tree produce enough nectar to yield 4 pounds (1.8 kg) of
honey [1].
Yellow-poplar was used medicinally in the late 1800's: a heart
stimulant was extracted from the inner bark of the root [13], and a
tonic for treating rheumatism and dyspepsia was extracted from stem bark
[28].
MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS :
Insects: Compared with other commercial species, yellow-poplar is
relatively free of pests. Only four insect species have important
impact on harvest. Tuliptree scale (Toumeyella liriodendri) and
yellow-poplar weevil (Odontopus calceatus) feed on the buds and stems.
Root collar borer (Euzophera ostricolorella) and Columbian timber beetle
(Corthtlus columbianus) bore into the bole and root crown, providing
pathways for other pathogens to enter the tree. The Columbian timber
beetle also lowers lumber grade by creating a large black streak above
and below beetle burrow entries [1,2,24].
Silviculture: Clearcutting is the recommended harvest method for
yellow-poplar. Its seeds survive for 4 to 8 years on the forest floor,
making seed tree cuts unnecessary [6]. When yellow-poplar is harvested
in warm seasons, the wood is susceptible to a wood-staining fungi
(Ceratocystis spp.) which lowers the lumber grade. Rapid processing of
the logs in warm seasons reduces monetary losses from staining [2].
Season of harvest can have an impact on establishment and growth of
yellow-poplar seedlings. In stands logged in late spring or summer,
seeds may not germinate until the following year; these seedlings may
not be able to compete with vegetation started the previous year.
However, where a good seed source was previously present, summer
cuttings usually produce an adequate number of seedlings. If the seed
supply in the litter is scarce, fall, winter, or early spring harvesting
may aid in seedling establishment [2].
Yellow-poplar is shade intolerant and responds well to overstory
thinning. Yellow-poplar was four times taller and five times larger in
dbh in an 18-year-old stand where all the overstory vegetation had been
removed than in the control [2]. Lamson [18] has provided information
on thinning. Yellow-poplar responds well to fertilization. It grew
twice as tall on sites fertilized with diammonium phosphate at a rate of
500 pounds per acre (562 kg/ha) than on control sites [10].
Pollution: Yellow-poplar is very sensitive to high ozone concentrations [8].
BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS
SPECIES: Liriodendron tulipifera | Yellow-Poplar
GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS :
Yellow-poplar is a tall, deciduous, long-lived, broadleaf tree. The
leaves are alternate with a distinctive tuliplike shape. In forest
stands yellow-poplar is one of the straightest and tallest trees, with
approximately 66 percent of the bole free of lateral branches [1,2]. It
can reach heights of 200 feet (61 m) and a dbh greater than 10 feet (3
m) [13]. The flowers are tuliplike in size and shape [1,2,11]. The
fruit is a conelike structure consisting of many winged samaras on a
central stalk [2].
RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM :
Phanerophyte
REGENERATION PROCESSES :
Yellow-poplar is mainly insect pollinatied, with some selfing. It a
prolific seed producer. It first produces seed at 15 to 20 years of age
and continues to do so for more than 200 years [1]. Heavy seed crops
tend to compensate for low seed viability (around 5-20 percent) [26].
The samaras are wind dispersed to distances 4 and 5 times the height of
the parent tree. The samaras remain viable in the seedbank for up to 8
years [5,16,19]. Seeds require a cold stratification period, and
germination rates vary with time and temperature. Generally as
temperature decreases and time increases the germination rate increases;
for example, 90 percent germination occurred after 140 days at 36
degrees Fahrenheit (2 deg C) [1,3]. Germination is epigeal and occurs
when seeds remain constantly moist for several weeks [3,5]. Germination
is enhanced on mineral soil or on well-decomposed humus [2].
Yellow-poplar sprouts from dormant buds located on the root crown after
cutting and/or fire. Sprouting decreases with age, as the bark becomes
too thick for the bud to break through [2,16]. Initially sprout growth
surpasses seedling growth, but at 25 to 35 years seedling regeneration
height catches and surpasses sprout regeneration height [2].
SITE CHARACTERISTICS :
Yellow-poplar grows best on north and east aspects, lower slopes,
sheltered coves, and gentle concave slopes [1,27].
Soils: Growth is best on moderately deep loams that are moderately
moist, well drained, and loose texured [1,27].
Associated species: Overstory associates include baldcypress (Taxodium
distichum), tupelo (Nyssa spp.), loblolly pine (Pinus taeda), shortleaf
pine (P. echinata), eastern white pine (P. strobus), oaks (Quercus
spp.), white ash (Fraxinus americana), American beech (Fagus
grandifolia), black walnut (Juglans nigra), and hickory (Carya spp.)
[1,2].
Climate: Yellow-poplar grows under a variety of climatic conditions due
its broad geographic distribution. The average rainfall varies from 30
to 80 inches (760-2030 mm), and the number of frost-free days varies from
150 to 310 days [1].
Elevation: Yellow-poplar grows near sea level in Florida to 4,500 feet
(1,364 m) in the Appalachian Mountains [3].
SUCCESSIONAL STATUS :
Obligate Initial Community Species
Yellow-poplar is a shade-intolerant, pioneer species. It often invades
open sites, and in oldfield succession it occurs in pure or nearly pure
stands [1,16].
SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT :
Yellow poplar flowers from April to June; seeds mature from August to
late October. Peak samara dispersal is from October to November, with a
few falling as late as March [2,26].
FIRE ECOLOGY
SPECIES: Liriodendron tulipifera | Yellow-Poplar
FIRE ECOLOGY OR ADAPTATIONS :
Mature yellow-poplars have bark sufficiently thick (> 0.5 inch [1 cm])
to insulate the cambium layer and allow trees to survive low- to
moderate-severity fire. Trees top-killed by fire sprout from dormant
buds located on the root crown [2]. Fire can enhance yellow-poplar
seedling establishment [31].
POSTFIRE REGENERATION STRATEGY :
Tree with adventitious-bud root crown/soboliferous species root sucker
Ground residual colonizer (on-site, initial community)
Secondary colonizer - off-site seed
FIRE EFFECTS
SPECIES: Liriodendron tulipifera | Yellow-Poplar
IMMEDIATE FIRE EFFECT ON PLANT :
Yellow-poplar seedlings and saplings have thin bark which makes them
very susceptible to fire damage. Fire generally kills young trees less
than 1 inch (2.5 cm) in diameter. Once bark is thick enough to insulate
the cambium (0.5 inch [1.3 cm]), yellow-poplar becomes extremely
resistant to fire damage [1,2]. Little mortality occurs once trees are
greater than 3 or 4 inches d.b.h. [31]. Yellow-poplar seeds are
generally resistant to heat damage [31].
DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF FIRE EFFECT :
Compared with other hardwoods, yellow-poplar is relatively resistance to
fire-damage-induced decay. A study comparing wound size with amounts of
bark discoloration found that yellow-poplars were more resistant to
wounding than oaks. Even when large amounts of bark were discolored,
larger diameter yellow-poplars developed only small wounds [31].
Several studies have determined that within a given size class,
yellow-poplar is generally more resistant to fire damage than oaks [31].
PLANT RESPONSE TO FIRE :
Sprouting: Yellow-poplar sprouts from the root crown following top-kill
by fire [2,16].
Seedling establishment: Prescribed fire enhances the regeneration of
yellow-poplar by releasing seed stored on the forest floor [31].
Following fall prescribed fire in the Upper Piedmont of South Carolina,
the number and height growth of yellow-poplar seedlings were
significantly higher on burned than on unburned plots. After one
growing season, the burned plots had about 12,000 seedlings per acre;
the unburned, 2,000. After three growing seasons, seedlings on the
burned plots averaged 3.5 feet (1.06 m) in height; seedlings on the
unburned plots averaged 3.0 feet (0.91 m) [26].
DISCUSSION AND QUALIFICATION OF PLANT RESPONSE :
While mature yellow-poplar is very fire resistant, the saplings are
susceptible to fire [1]. In a 5-year-old stand burned with varying
severities, the densities of saplings over 4.5 feet (1.4 m) in height 3
years (areas 1 and 3) and 2 years (areas 2 and 4) after fire had
decreased significantly from prefire densities. Sapling densities
(stems/acrer) were as follows [22]:
Area 1 Area 2 Area 3 Area 4
Burn Burn No Burn Burn
(Moderate) (Light) (Control) (Severe)
Saplings 709 74 677 294
Postfire change -438 -21 +23 -8
Severe basal wounding of 8- to 18-inch-diameter yellow-poplars had no
significant effect on diameter growth rate 7 to 14 years after a fire
[31].
FIRE MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS :
NO-ENTRY
REFERENCES
SPECIES: Liriodendron tulipifera | Yellow-Poplar
REFERENCES :
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Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southeastern Forest
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Index
Related categories for Species: Liriodendron tulipifera
| Yellow-Poplar
|
 |
