Best grown in rich, humusy, consistently moist, well-drained soils in full sun. In the wild, this tree grows in a large variety of soils ranging from rocky soils at high mountain elevations to clay or sandy loams at lower elevations. This tree thrives in cool northern climates, but can struggle in the heat and humidity of a Midwestern summer. Generally intolerant of urban pollutants. In the wild, aspens typically appear in groupings or groves, with all of the stems in a grouping being clones rising from a single extensive underground root system. Large groves featuring hundreds of clones may have all originated from a single stem. Trees are dioecious, so each grouping consists of all male clones or all female clones.
Prairie Gold® is a Nebraska native selection from J. Frank Schmidt Nursery adapted to the heat, drought and humidity of the Midwestern prairie. Grows to a height of 40′ with a spread of 15′.