State Prints - KY Treasures Tulip Poplar

  The Tulip Poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera) became Kentucky's "Official Tree" in (1994). The
controversy over Kentucky's state tree brewed for more than forty years before being decided in 1994.

  Not an actual poplar, the tulip poplar is a member of the magnolia family. Its name is derived from
the greenish-yellow tulip-like flowers the tree produces in the spring, usually in May. The leaves look
like silhouettes of a tulip, although most say that has nothing to do with its name. The flowers' petals
fall shortly after blooming, leaving behind cone-shaped clusters of winged seeds that ripen in the fall
and drift away. The seeds are eaten by various types of birds and small animals, but aren't great
favorites of any, except possibly cardinals. Once the seeds are blown away or devoured, the cones
remain throughout the winter.

  In Kentucky, the tulip poplar prefers the mountains of Eastern Kentucky. Tulip poplars thrive in
deep, moist soils along streams and in mountain coves. They need full sunlight to grow and develop;
in dense woods, newly-germinated seedlings will survive only a few weeks. Stands of tulip poplars
are usually established in abandoned fields by wind-borne seeds. Tulip poplars are rapid-growing
and long-lived. They grow straight and are tall, averaging about 100 feet.