Cottonwood Climber

This colossal shrub grows up to 12 feet (3.7 meters) tall and lives for around 17 years. It is not very resistant to disease and destructive insect infestation.

It has dozens of slender, wonky stems covered in thick, silky, black bark, and the wood inside is light brown.

The branches are short, rigid and upright with hundreds of twigs that and are covered with handfuls of small, very thin, leaves with rounded edges. The leaves themselves are bronze and bronze, sturdy and covered in fine hairs.

In late spring it produces dozens of large, purple flowers with fan-like petals. They fall easily and have a delicate scent that smells like cotton.