Aspen
Populus tremulaAspen is a slender tree that usually grows in a close group of stems from the same roots. Its nearly round leaves hang on flattened stalks and tremble in the lightest breeze.
How to identify aspen →
Jens-Christian Svenning, CC BY 4.0
Георгий Виноградов (Georgy Vinogradov), CC BY 4.0
Lookalikes
Aspen or silver birch?
Both are pale-barked trees that spring up on open ground.
The quickest check
The quickest check is the trunk. Aspen: cream and smooth, banded with black diamonds. Silver birch: white and papery, black diamonds at the base.
At a glance
| Look at | Aspen | Silver birch |
|---|---|---|
| Trunk | Cream and smooth, banded with black diamonds | White and papery, black diamonds at the base |
| Leaf outline | Nearly round, big wave-shaped teeth | Triangular, big teeth with smaller between |
Two ways to tell them apart
TrunkBark
Leaf outlineLeaves
The two trees
Silver birch
Betula pendulaSilver birch is a slim, fast-growing tree with a light, open crown. Its bark is white and papery, with rough black diamonds at the base. The finest twigs hang straight down.
How to identify silver birch →
In the app
See them side by side in Treely
- Both trees, part by partLeaves, bark, buds, flowers and fruit, photographed through the year
- Every lookalike side by sideThe checks that settle it, for every pair people mix up
- A short round each dayUntil you can tell them apart at a glance
- The full GuideBoth trees written up in full, with where to find them
Free to download.
Every fact on this page is checked against the Collins Tree Guide, last in November 2026. Spotted something that looks wrong in front of a real tree? Tell us. How we check.
Photographs: Jens-Christian Svenning (CC BY 4.0), Георгий Виноградов (Georgy Vinogradov) (CC BY 4.0), jamie-aa (CC BY 4.0), sim_elliott (CC0), Dan McLaughlan (CC BY 4.0), steve_mcwilliam (CC0). With thanks to everyone who shares their photographs on iNaturalist and Wikimedia Commons.