Part of the "poplar" genus Populus.  If the mid-vein=narrow and buds=slightly-hairy (rather than mid-vein=wide and buds=sticky), some sources call this the subspecies plains cottonwood Populus deltoides monilifera or Populus deltoides occidentalis or Populus sargentii.

Native to 🇨🇦 Canada and 🇺🇸 USA Great Plains, Midwest, East and South.

Uses by native peoples
(Ethnobotany database) Populus hosts caterpillars of 367 species
of butterflies and moths, in some areas.

Can form a hybrid with balsam poplar Populus balsamifera (also part of the "poplar" genus Populus), forming balm of Gilead Populus gileadensis.   It occurs occasionally in nature.

Learn more about eastern cottonwood Populus deltoides

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