The _wood_ is light brown, almost white. It is light, weak and not durable, and is used for pulpwood, fruit-crates and berry boxes. The large-tooth aspen, _Populus grandidentata_ Michx., is found in the northern half of Illinois and frequently grows alongside the quaking aspen. Its leaves are larger than those of the quaking aspen and the edges are coarsely and irregularly toothed. The winter buds have dull chestnut-brown scales and are somewhat downy. The bark is light gray tinged with reddish-brown. +COTTONWOOD+ _Populus deltoides_ Marsh. THE cottonwood, or Carolina poplar, is one of the largest trees in Illinois, growing on flood plains along small streams and in depressions in the prairie. It is one of the best trees for forestry purposes for planting where quick shade is desired. The wood is soft, light, weak, fine-grained but tough. It is good for pulp, boxes and berry baskets. [Illustration: COTTONWOOD Leaf, one-third natural size. Twig, one-third natural size.] The _leaves_ are simple, alternate, broadly triangular, pointed and coarse toothed on the edges, 3 to 5 inches across, thick and firm supported by flattened slender petioles, 2 to 3 inches long. The _winter buds_ are large and covered with chestnut-brown shining resinous scales. The _flowers_ are in catkins, of two kinds, on different trees and appear before the leaves. The _fruit_ ripens in late spring, appearing as long drooping strings of ovoid capsules filled with small seeds. These strings of fruit, 5 to 8 inches long, give to the tree the name of "necklace poplar." The seeds are covered with white cottony hairs. The swamp cottonwood, _Populus heterophylla_ L., occurs in swamps in the southern part of Illinois, and may be known by its broadly ovate leaves, 3 to 5 inches wide and 4 to 7 inches long with blunt-apex and cordate base. A few trees of the balsam poplar, _Populus tacamahaca_ Mill., are found in Lake County near the shores of Lake Michigan. The leaves are ovate-lanceolate, pointed, and cordate. The large buds are covered with fragrant resin. The European white poplar, _Populus alba_ L., with light gray bark and leaves, white wooly beneath, is often found near old houses and along roadsides. The Lombardy poplar, a tall narrow form of the European black poplar, _Populus nigra_ var. _italica_ Du Roi, is often planted and is a striking tree for the roadside. +BLACK WILLOW+ _Salix nigra_ Marsh. THE black willow is not only a denizen of the forest but it is at home on the prairies and on the plains and even invades the desert. It grows singly or in clumps along the water courses, a tree 40 to 60 feet in height with a short trunk. [Illustration: BLACK WILLOW Two-thirds natural size.]