Liriodendron tulipifera

Liriodendron tulipifera—known as the tulip tree, American tulip tree, tulipwood, tuliptree, tulip poplar, whitewood, fiddletree, lynn-tree, hickory-poplar, and yellow-poplar—is the North American representative of the two-species genus Liriodendron (the other member is Liriodendron chinense). It is native to eastern North America from Southern Ontario and possibly southern Quebec to west to Illinois, and east to southwestern Massachusetts, then south to central Florida and Louisiana. Tulip tree is the tallest tree of the temperate deciduous forest. It can grow to more than 50 m (160 ft) in virgin cove forests of the Appalachian Mountains, often with no limbs until it reaches 25–30 m (80–100 ft) in height, making it a very valuable timber tree. The tallest individual at the present time (2021) is one called the Fork Ridge Tulip Tree at a secret location in the Great Smoky Mountains of North Carolina. Repeated measurements by laser and tape-drop have shown it to be 191 feet 10 inches (58.47 m) in height. This species is also fast-growing, without the common problems of weak wood strength and short lifespan often seen in fast-growing species. In 2024 the unusual combination of fast-growing with strong wood was explained. No longer called a hardwood, the term "midwood" was created expressly for the wood of tulip tree. The tulip tree is the state tree of Indiana, Kentucky, and Tennessee.