Lombardy Poplar Trees

Populus nigra Italica Standards

Populus nigra Italica, the Lombardy Poplar tree, is a vigorous, narrow, tall plant that thrives on dry soils, except chalk.
Populus nigra Italica trees can reach a height of about 30 metres.
Standard trees are the largest size that we deliver; you can also buy younger Populus nigra Italica saplings here.
Browse all of our other varieties of Poplar trees for sale.

How Standard Trees are Measured:
All the plants in the ornamental trees section are graded as standards, which means that they are measured by their girth in centimetres 1 metre above ground level (basically, their trunk's waist measurement). They aren't measured by their height, which will vary. So, a 6/8 standard has a trunk with a circumference of 6-8 centimetres and an 8/10 standard has a trunk 8-10 centimetres around. This measurement makes no difference to the tree's final height.
Standard trees are 2 - 3.5 metres tall (on average) when they arrive; they are the most mature trees that you can buy from us. We cannot tell you precisely how tall your trees will be before we deliver them.

General description of Populus nigra Italica trees:
Their extremely tall, slender form became a real fashion statement and a drive way lined with poplars in summer not only gives a grand air to a property, it also requires no pruning to keep it looking superbly neat and tidy. Their bark is rough and becomes ridged at a young age, while their leaves are a squashed teardrop shape. They bear quite long, copper-orange catkins in spring that spread their pollen in the wind, putting on a little show just before the leaves appear. Unfortunately, the pollen is unlikely to reach its goal; all Lombardy poplar trees sold to the public are male, cloned from one original parent (the female of the species is not as fastigiate as the male). This tree used to be known as Populus nigra Pyramidalis, though it is hard to think of a tree that is less pyramid shaped.

History & uses of Lombardy Poplar:
The Lombardy poplar (spelt Lombardi in Europe) is one of the most recognizable trees in the country, thanks to its totally upright (fastigiate, to use the botanical term) growth. Populus nigra Italica was introduced to Britain in the 1750's and can now be found in every corner of the land, such is its popularity.