Euphrates Poplar

Used for timber; vulnerable.

The wood is used for fuel in Sindh. In Punjab, it is used for well curbs and for ternery. The leaves are lopped for feeding goats. In former Russia, the resin of the bark, under the name of `buriarmini' is considered to have medicinal properties. The plant produces root suckers in abundance. Reproduction by cutting and root suckers is, however, difficult.

Tree of medium size. Leaves pale grey-green, vary in form, linear-lanceolate on the long branches to broadly oblong on the short branches. Very spectacular. Disease resistant, also heat and drought resistant. Z 6. New.

Trees to 15 m tall, rarely shrubby; bark grayish brown, furrowed on basal part of trunk. Branchlets brownish, tomentulose or glabrous, pilose when young. Sprouts terete, slender, smooth or slightly tomentose. Buds brown, ellipsoid, ca. 7 mm, glabrescent. Petiole at maturity slightly complanate, ca. as long as leaf blade; leaf blade ovate-orbicular, reniform, or deltoid-ovate, base cuneate, broadly cuneate, rounded, or truncate, with 2 glands, apex with coarse teeth. Leaves of seedling stage and on sprouts shortly petiolate; leaf blade linear, lanceolate, linear-lanceolate, or oblanceolate, margin entire or with irregular, loose, undulate teeth. Male catkin slender, terete, 2-3 cm; rachis tomentulose. Male flower: anthers purplish red. Female catkin 2.5 cm, to 9 cm in fruit; rachis tomentulose or glabrous; ovary long ovoid, tomentulose or glabrous, long stipitate. Female flower: stigmas 3, yellowish green, each 2-lobed. Capsule 1-1.2 cm, glabrous, 2- or 3-valved. Fl. May, fr. Jul-Aug.

Tree up to 15 m tall; sucker formation common; bark greyish. Young branches yellowish brown, glabrous. Leaves leathery, glabrous, very variable in form and size; on young plants and on long shoots, linear to elongate-ovate, 3-12 x 0.5-4 cm, usually entire, petiole 7.5-15 mm long; on older trees and on short shoots ovate-rhombic, elliptic-orbicular or reniform, 2-5 x 3-7 cm or larger, shallowly dentate in upper part; petiole 1.2-5 cm long. Male catkin 2.5-5 cm long, lax. Male flowers: bract oblanceolate, incised; disc orbicular on a long slender stipe, flat, 8-cleft; stamens 8-12, anthers longer then filaments. Female catkin 5-8 cm long, lax. Female flower: disc membranous caducous, tubular with 8-12 linear segments; stigmas 2-3 ± crescent shaped, narrowed into a short style. Capsule 7.5-12 mm, smooth, glabrous or slightly pubescent when young, 2-3 valved. Pedicel 3.5-5 mm.

Caucasus (southern Transcaucasus, Araks, Zangezur), northern Turkey and western Iran. Along streams.

Gansu, W Nei Mongol, Qinghai, Xinjiang [Afghanistan, ?India, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan; SW Asia].

Distribution: Pakistan (Sindh, Baluchistan, Punjab) Kashmir; Afghanistan; Iran; Iraq; Kazakstan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, China (Gansu, W Nei Mongol, Qinghai, Xinjiang), N. Africa, Spain.(F. Zhenfu, Z. Shidong & A. K. Skvortsov, l.c.).

Fl. Per.: February.

Plains, valleys, basins; 200-2400 m.

Balsamiflua euphratica (Olivier) Kimura; Populus ariana Dode; P. diversifolia Schrenk; P. litwinowiana Dode; Turanga euphratica (Olivier) Kimura.