Poplar

Poplar (Populus; Ukrainian: topolia, osyka, osokir). A rapid-growing, deciduous tree of the family Salicaceae, valued for its pulp, shade, and beauty. Many species of poplar are known, and found in the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere. In Ukraine three species grow wild—the European aspen (P. tremula; Ukrainian: osyka), the black poplar (P. nigra; Ukrainian: osokir), and the white poplar (P. alba; Ukrainian: topolia)—on the floodplains of large rivers, along lakefronts, in dried-up riverbeds, or as protective screens along roads and fields. Some poplars are cultivated as ornamentals; pollution-resistant P. italica, P. deltoides, and P. balsamifera provide green foliage in cities. The wood is light, soft, and easily worked, and is used in the manufacture of paper, matches, plywood, and packing crates, in construction, and in the production of rayon. Poplars figure frequently in Ukrainian folk songs and literary works.