If there were a Guinness Book of World Records for trees, the quaking aspen would be in it — several times. First, it has the widest natural range of any tree in North America, spanning 47 degrees of latitude (equal to half the distance from the equator to the North Pole), 110 degrees of longitude (nine time zones), and elevations from sea level to timberline. It is also the largest living organism, growing in clones that reproduce primarily by sending up sprouts from their roots. And as far as the oldest…a clone in Minnesota has been estimated to be 8,000 years old!
It is not a tree for all places. But planted in the right location, the quaking aspen is a delight of color, movement, and sound.
