I think it's only the female cottonwood that is illegal to sell here in Oklahoma since they are the ones that produce the seeds. I've only heard this from my husband and I don't know where he got the information so to confirm this, you would have to call a nursery or tree farm and ask. The cotton is really flying around here this week.

Hi Y'all!

As far as I know, there are no trees that are prohibited by law in the state of Oklahoma. We had a thread going on prohibited plants a while back, and the only list I could find after extensive googling was a list of mostly wildflower seeds that are restricted in batches of other seeds due to their overly invasive nature. Even these were not so much prohibited, but merely restricted in that they could be only a certain percentage of the purchased seed.

Cottonwoods here are exploding and sending their cotton everywhere, and it is reflected in our allergic reaction here at our house! Sneeze, sneeze, sneeze!

We don't have any large cottonwood trees here, so I don't know of a good way to clean up the cottony seedheads. If you have a leaf blower that can be "reversed" and used as a leaf vac, you might try vacuuming up that stuff. I don't know if it is worth your time, though, because more will just blow in from somewhere else!

Dawn

I asked the husband and he said he heard it on two saturday garden radio shows , WKY AM and KTOK AM, that they are illegal to sell in Oklahoma City .

I have always loved cottonwood trees because they are usually so massive. Saturday we stopped at a restaurant to eat, and as we exited our truck, there were cotton fibers drifting through the air like it was snowing. I thought it was pretty cool until I got one in my eye. My eye teared and hurt badly for the next 4-5 hours, and that just about ruined my day. I couldn't see it to get it out. I finally bought some artificial tears and flushed my eye until I eventually got the cotton fiber out. I think I will always HATE cottonwood trees from now on. LOL

I asked the husband and he said he heard it on two saturday garden radio shows , WKY AM and KTOK AM, that they are illegal to sell in Oklahoma City .

I hate cottonwood trees. We have one in our back yard that is too large to cut down (for less than about $800.) Our neighbor also has one - another neighbor says that the other one is female. I can pull the stuff from roses, but the fibers are tightly wound around my columbine, and make it look dirty. My columbines are huge and should be so pretty, but the cottonwood is really stuck to it. Even the rain didn't loosen it. I do so hate those trees. I also think I am allergic to the cottonwood cotton.
Sammy

We nearly lost an air conditioner to a cottonwood tree. The pretty cotton would float down and get sucked up tight against the unit. I was taking it apart and cleaning it everyday. Then came the revenge of Mr. Stihl. I cut that tree down and hauled it off. That was the first of three 30" diameter cottonwood trees to go horizontal. A good chainsaw and a big woodchipper will make something useful out of them. On one tree alone we ran everything through the chipper that would fit, 7" and less. I ended up with 7 pickup loads of woodchips. They made nice mulch.

We have one left that is male. It is great. Nice shade and the leaves sound pretty in a breeze, but no cotton!

Too bad you can't tell a male from a female tree until they are large enough to produce seed! I like the trees.

I believe that it is city ordinances that make planting female conttonwoods illegal. And well it should be.

Perhaps the nurseries know how to tell the difference between male and female trees when they are young (which leaves to look under. ;))

There is a 25 year old two trunked cottonwood tree in my next door neighbor's back yard. Fortunately it is male so, thank God we do not have to deal with all that litter and allergy problems that the stuff causes me.

Bad thing though is that the tree has sever stress crack in both the trunks, limbs, and limb croches that get larger every time we have extreem winds blow through.

It worries my backyard neighbor to death. She is so afraid that one of those massive branches or worse yet one of the trunks will break off and crash through the roof of her house.

The owners of the house seem to care less that such an event seems to likely happen. You know it is like death. Everyone knows it comes to all of us at one time or another, but better not to think about it and just go on as if it won't happen to us, at least not right now.

Well right or wrong, I still wish that was a hardwood tree instead of a twice as tall as the two story house soft wood tree that is giving the neighbor so much worry.

My neighbor has a cottonwood and refuses to cut it down and it has trashed my yard. There is this white crap everywhere. On my bushes, flowers, tomato plants, etc. We work very hard to make our yard look nice and now it looks terrible! These trees totally suck! Does anyone know how long this stupid tree is going to be trashing my yard?

I almost hate to say anything here because this seems to be a very hot button issue for some. But despite it's negative attributes, I like cottonwood trees. To me (an college history professor) they symbolize the romance of the American West and I imagine how grateful the western trail travelers were to see them after a hot, dusty day in the blazing sun. One time I camped in Colorado cottonwood grove in about a foot of the fluff - it was like snow and very fun to me!

I also love the sound of the leaves in the breeze, and their beautiful yellow blaze in the fall. I know they are a pain in the neck if you want to have a "pristine" looking yard, but my yard is so far from "pristine" that I gave that idea up long ago. I have come to love it's "semi-natural" state. If you want to make a list of "nuisance" trees, oaks would top my list, especially Post Oaks - acorns - yuk! Twigs and dead branches down with every breeze - yuk! But again, the squirrels love the acorns and they do make nice shade (mine are about 70 years old). They're also part of the legacy of the Crosstimbers that Indians, European explorers, and pioneers had to contend with. Anyway, that's my 2 cents. Of course, I've never gotton a cotton fiber in my eye!

I Live in NC and there arnt many of them around me...we have one at work and I love the cotton...It floats around but it never seems to stick...its just floatin around and blowing away I enjoy watchin it. I couldnt have one in my yard as it would not be big enough but if I had a large open area a pasture or something it would be nice.

@katrina1 14 years later, did the neighbor's tree ever fall or drop big branches?

I am needing help with trying to prove that these trees are a nuisance to me and my surrounding neighbors. How is it fair that I have to clean up literally big black trash bags full of this cotton all over my front and back yard. If one of these trees fall on my house than me and my family would be dead. Both trees are not in my yard. One is on city property and one is my neighbors that she can't cut down bc she is pregnant and she only rents and her landlord doesn't care. Anything that would help my case is greatly appreciated.

Sounds like some people are very dramatic!

Having grown up around waterways with multiple Eastern Cottonwood trees, I have NEVER seen enough "cotton" to "fill" big black trash bags. Ever.

Nor are these trees the scary, weak wooded dangers that some chicken littles claim. My grandmother's property on the water has a couple large cottonwoods and they have never dropped any large limbs in the yard or on the house in the fifty years since it was built.

You know what's a more dangerous tree to have near a house? Silver Maple or Eucalyptus that's what.

A true nuisance are those people that let their dog out and leave it out all day and all night and do nothing to stop its incessant barking.

Cottonwoods are magnificent and large trees. Important pioneer species that colonize new areas and allow better conditions for more long-lived species to grow and develop not to mention the wildlife habitats and the carbon storage they provide if one takes the "liberal" green approach. No tree is appropriate for all areas, but like a weeping willow, an appropriately located tree is a thing of admirable beauty.

Steven

We have one large old cottonwood tree and it is beautiful but this year the cotton blowing around and sticking to everything is overwhelming. It has covered the yard, is layered on the roof and is woven into the air conditioner unit outside and is also clinging to our outdoor fans. It sticks to the bottom of our shoes and is tracked into the house. All over the dog kennel and into the food and water within minutes of redoing. When you go after it with the water hose sprayer it balls up and looks like dead animals. Would be humorous if not such a pain in the rear end. My 2 yr. old grandson looked out the window yesterday afternoon and proclaimed "Look grandma it's snowing". But it was 95 degrees with a heat index of 101. We've lived in this house for 28 yrs. and don't remember it ever being this bad. We did have a very wet spring.

Wheeeeee! Guess this is a room I need to stay out of. I'm from Wyoming. Thirty-eight years of flying cotton but glorious shade.