Tulip Tree - The Indiana State Tree

The tulip-shaped leaves make this tree easy to identify. It's beautiful and useful, for home and public places..

The tall and stately tulip tree is the state tree of Indiana. Also called tulip poplar or yellow popular, this statuesque tree stands out in parks and yards all around Indiana, and the rest of its native habitat in eastern North America.

Besides the size and shape of the tree itself, its tulip-shaped leaves and flowers are also distinctive. The flowers are easy to see because they are more pronounced than those of many other trees.

Tulip trees are often planted as ornamentals or specimen trees, in lawns and parks. And of course, they are especially popular on Indiana college campuses.

Tulip trees remind me of school days, when I was making a leaf collection in summer biology, and for 4-H forestry displays. It’s easy to remember and appreciate this tree.

A Cousin To The Magnolia

One of 200 species, most native to North America and Asia

The tulip tree, Liriodendron tulipifera, is a member of the magnolia family. Its flower can be almost 2 inches long, a lot showier than many other trees, but a plain cousin to the large blossoms of ornamental magnolia trees.

The tulip tree makes up for this in height. A fully grown tulip tree reaches 150 to 160 feet tall. If you have one of these in your yard, you know it!

In the wild, this tree is found in deciduous, upland woods with moist soil. They are pollinated by bees. It is a fine example of the trees that are native to the eastern forests of North America.

A Tall Tree in the Neighborhood

A Beautiful Tree for the Front Yard

Photo by kimbesa

From Log Cabins to City Parks

Hoosiers, those from Indiana, claimed this tree as the official state tree

Early Hoosiers had to appreciate the tulip tree that was so common in the woods – tall and straight, with soft wood that is easily worked. In times past, poplar wood was often used for painted furniture and construction. They would have used this wood to full advantage.

Tulip tree leaves Indiana state tree The tulip tree was designated as the state tree in 1931. It may have been chosen because it was favored for building log cabins in the early days of the state. Straight trunks, light weight for the size, fast growing yet strong, and plentiful – all qualities that would make it a settler’s easy choice when looking for lumber to build a log house.

Today, tulip trees are popular in urban environments that are difficult for growing many other trees. It has an upright shape, and can withstand extremes of heat and cold, and air pollution, too.

The tulip tree’s range shows how versatile it is, too. It grows from humid tropics in Florida, north into Canada – literally from the shores of the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes. It is related to the mountain magnolia or cucumber tree, which has a similar range, including higher elevations in the Smoky Mountains.

Kentucky and Tennessee also have made the tulip tree their state trees.

First of Indiana Trees

Street planting tulip tree

Photo by kimbesa

Tulip Tree

Distinctive shaped leaves

Photo by kimbesa

Tree Identification Books


101 Trees of Indiana: A Fieldguide (I... View on Amazon	Identifying Trees: An All-Season Guid... View on Amazon

Updated: 07/04/2013, kimbesa

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katiem2 on 09/14/2017

kimbesa, Indeed and the trees shade, height and beauty is well worth the simple sweep of my back deck, it needs to be done anyway, natures way of keeping me on my toes.

kimbesa on 09/14/2017

katiem2 They are stately trees, great as a single show stopper, which it sounds like you have. We don't run into problems with the clutter because ours are in a fence row. No one goes barefoot out back in the field. Thanks for stopping by and reading!

katiem2 on 09/13/2017

I have a tulip tree in my back yard, the leaves are huge and provide lots of shade, the flowers are gorgeous and the tree grows faster than any tree I've ever had. The only thing I don't like is the sharp things it drops in the fall... They are rough on bare feet. But other than that I love it! Great tribute to Tulip Poplar.

kimbesa on 08/24/2017

I go with tulip poplar because of the leaves, too!

I recently found out that we have at least three tulip trees in the hedgerow on one side of our field, so I can enjoy these trees much more often.