Widely distributed throughout Southern, Central and East Europe,
North Africa and eastwards to Central Asia the Black or Water
Poplar is almost certainly native to lowland England but as with
many of our tree species its present distribution is largely
artificial, the result of widespread planting. Nationally
sources cite figures of c.7,500 trees, of which c. 600 are
female (Jones, 2004)- these numbers are regarded by many experts
to be inaccurate but the relative proportion of the sexes is
unlikely to change greatly. The great disparity in the
distribution and abundance of the sexes would be difficult to
account for as a natural phenomenon. The distribution of
diversity is being elucidated by DNA sequencing techniques;
these have identified the wide distribution of particular
vegetatively propagated and hence planted clones. Most trees are
to be found south of a line from the Mersey to the Humber
estuaries, with scattered occurrences northwards. Genetically
distinct populations occur in the central plain of