I have my heart set on one of these trees. I know they grow wild - we used to see them along the Cowichan River - but would nurseries carry them?
I think so - there seem to be several species that answer to balm of Gilead, depending on the source. Would they all be fragrant, because that is what I am looking for, the 'scent of spring'. From a website on herbal remedies:
What type of tree were the Cowichan ones? Fir? Poplar? If you are trying to get one of those, figuring out what they were would be the main thing. Balsam fir will not be likely to make a lasting specimen where you are now. 'Candicans' poplar produces a large specimen not likely to be suited for locations near structures etc. Although you may have a large property.
I was reading up on Populus in my bible, the Sunset Western Garden Book, and... yikes! But I don't think this is the one - in none of the species do they mention the scent. Incidentally, there is a canadensis and a canescens, but no candicans.
Populus 'Candicans' is a probable hybrid of unknown origin dating from around 1755. It was common at one time but is not prevalent in nurseries at present.
Populus balsamifera Black Cottonwood, I strongly suspect. The buds scent the woods & rivers as they swell & open in the spring. If it were I, I would just dig up a seedling, of which there are many somewhere close to you, I am sure. These grow into large trees :)
Upon further research, I think you're right. But it puzzles me that the Sunset book doesn't include it. I'll contact some local arborists to see if I can find a 'grove' nearby. And I will plant it well away from my house!
More commonly listed as Populus trichocarpa. Some botanists now treat this as a synonym of P. balsamifera, but that merge is far from a universal opinion.
My source for the name I use, Populus balsamifera subsp. trichocarpa , is eflora.bc.ca: http://linnet.geog.ubc.ca/Atlas/Atlas.aspx?sciname=Populus balsamifera ssp. trichocarpa&redblue=Both&lifeform=2 Beyond that I will not venture an opinion :)
