Aspen

Populus tremula

Description and Habitat
Aspen is one of the trees seldom mentioned when discussing British trees, but in fact it is one of the most common of the Poplar trees that grows in these Isles, its densest population being in Scotland it can grow up to 70 feet high, and will grow in any soil and terrain.

Its Latin name of Populus deems it of the Poplar family and its species name of tremula because of its apparently trembling leaves, according to the Doctrine of Signatures Aspen trees were said to cure fevers that cause the patient to tremble and shake.

Aspen leaves are two inches long with a slight jagged edge and slight rounded shape with an elliptical stork. The young leaves are a copper colour, turning green in summer, then a bright yellow in autumn. The Aspen has a delicate and open shape which is more visable in winter with the bark silver-green in colour with black or dark grey diamonds and will furrow with age. The leaf stalks are very flexible near to the leaf; this gives them their characteristic tremble or flutter with the slightest of breeze. Interestingly the leaves will also tremble on hot days when there is no breeze because of the heat reflected from the ground.

The Aspen is dioecious (individual trees have separate sexes, they are either male or female) Both male and female Aspen trees produce catkins, female catkins produce seed which are mainly pollinated by bees and are tiny and fly on the slightest breeze and are white and woolly in appearance and will be shed in May. But the Aspen isn’t only propagated by seed, as the root too produces suckers which can shoot from anywhere in its extensive root system. The roots of the Aspen can live beneath the earth long after the tree above ground has died, this means that the Aspen can suddenly appear from apparently nowhere and flourish.

Use
Aspen wood was much used to make handles for tools, spears and arrows, and its lightweight wood was in much demand for shield making. The Greek for Aspen is Aspis which means shield. The timber is light, making it practically useless for burning.

Medicinal uses
The Aspen is not usually indicated for medicinal qualities today, although the bark, flower buds and leaves can be useful for stimulation of the appetite, and one of its constituents is salicin, which is an active ingredient found also in Meadowsweet herb and White Willow Bark, which is widely prescribed by healers as a remedy for pain, especially headaches and fevers. Aspen has been used to alleviate malaria; it is an anti inflammatory and diuretic, making it excellent for urinary problems and fluid retention. It is a styptic, making it useful to stop bleeding, and its astringent qualities make it useful for toning the skin.

Folklore
The Aspen tree abounds with folklore:

The leaves being dark on one side and light on the other has given rise to much of its mythology, it is said to symbolise night and day, moon and sun and the duality.

In weather lore it is said: if Aspen and White Poplar turn their leaves to the opposite quarter of the heavens then wet weather is heralded by the upturned pale underside of the leaves.

The trembling leaves bring much too in the way of lore, the Aspen is said to be the wood that the cross of Jesus was made from, so it has shuddered in guilt and horror since that day. Another is that the Aspen was the only tree that wouldn’t bow down to Jesus as he travelled to Calvary, and as a punishment the tree was forever condemned to shudder.

Once piece of folklore says that to cure a fever, to pin a lock of the patient’s hair to an Aspen tree and chant the words

“Aspen tree, Aspen tree

I ask thee to shake and shiver instead of me”

Aspen branches were used to make arrows and staffs, and are imbued with divinational qualities, and it is indicated in one or two recipes for the infamous flying ointment, although it is difficult to see what possible use it might have been, unless of course, anyone knows different?

Stand beneath an Aspen tree, and its rustling leaves will appear to speak or sing, this gave rise to its association with the fey or faery, and many a persons disappearance whilst standing beneath this tree is attributed to them being whisked off to the land of faery.

In Scotland the name for the Aspen is critheann, (crith in Gaelic means tremble), where it was considered wrong to use the wood of the Aspen for agriculture because of its association with the fey, its leaves when placed under the tongue give the gift of (silver speech), a gift from the Faery Queen.