Liriodendron tulipifera - Tuliptree Fact Sheet

Liriodendron tulipifera - Tuliptree, tree in winter

Liriodendron tulipifera - Tuliptree - bark

Liriodendron tulipifera - Tuliptree, winter branch with leaf scars and bud scars

Liriodendron tulipifera - Tuliptree, winter branch with leaf scars, bud scars and terminal bud

Liriodendron tulipifera - Tuliptree, bud opening in spring

Liriodendron tulipifera - Tuliptree, leaf in summer

Liriodendron tulipifera - Tuliptree, flower in summer

Liriodendron tulipifera - Tuliptree, fruit in summer

Liriodendron tulipifera - Tuliptree, dried fruit in fall

Liriodendron tulipifera -Tuliptree, outer layer of fruit persists in winter

In forest stands, the trunk of the mature tuliptree is very straight, tall, and clear of lateral branches for a considerable height.
Liriodendron tulipifera is among the tallest of all Eastern United States broadleaf trees.
On the best sites, old-growth trees may be nearly 200 ft high and 8 to 12 ft d.b.h., but more often they are from 100 to 150 at maturity, with a straight trunk 2 to 5 ft in diameter.
Age at natural death is usually about 200 to 250 years. However, some trees may live up to 300 years. At The Morton Arboretum there are a number of trees that appear to have 2 or 3 trunks.
On young trees, the bark on the trunk is smooth, light gray.
Twigs are moderately stout, olive-brown, to reddish brown depending on the season. Twigs are very smooth and usually lustrous.
The buds of Liriodendron tulipifera are valvate and look like a duck's bill. The terminal bud is significantly larger than the lateral buds. The outer scales leave stipule rings that surround the twig.
The fruit of the tuliptree is a conelike aggregate of many winged carpels. It is an upright green "cone-like" structure during the summer and ripens and matures from early August in the North to late October in the South.
The individual, winged samaras, which seem almost "woody" may be scattered by the wind to distances equal to four or five times the height of a tree. Yellow-poplar seeds retain their viability in the forest floor from 4 to 7 years.
The outer scales and center spike may remain on the tree throughout the winter.
See more spring and summer photos of Liriodendron tulipifera at Wcisel.com

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