Siblings
Kebler Pass
A Quaking Aspen (Populus tremuloides) tree isn’t really one tree… it is actually a stand of clone “trees” all growing up from one root system that regenerates itself after each fire clears the landscape. Aspen trees grow quickly and provide cover for pine saplings until the pine trees begin to overtake the aspens, eventually crowding them out. Some of these root systems are among the oldest living organisms on planet Earth. Photo © copyright by Chris Eaton.