It’s too soft to be of much use except the odd piece of furniture (for which it is pretty terrible because it dents too easily). As a woodworker finishing it also sucks because the fibers tear too easily. Its grain pattern looks bland at best, it ages poorly, and its color is too inconsistent from tree to tree.
That said, it’s one of the most stable woods so it doesn’t warp much which is why it’s a popular base material for plywood and it’s easy on cutting tools. I usually only use it for the interior parts of drawers.
It also grows very fast, particularly (per acre) if closely spaced, which makes it of interest for biofuels.
https://farm-energy.extension.org/poplar-populus-spp-trees-f...
It's considered to be a poor firewood around here, as well.
Which is all great for arrow shafts actually. Just may need to be thicker than usual.
The Mary Rose shafts seem to mostly have been poplar.
Not that this would be very relevant nowadays but still.