Habitat

• native to eastern North America; also found in cooler areas in the mountains of Georgia and the Southwest
• zone 3

Habit and Form

• medium shade tree
• deciduous
• pyramidal and dense when young, developing a broad, round, spreading crown when mature
• 40' to 55' in the landscape; 70' to 80' tall in the wild
• medium texture

Summer Foliage

• alternate, simple leaves, 2.5" to 6" long by 1-1.5" to 3-3.5" wide
• broad, ovate leaves with cordate base
• shiny green above, paler below

Autumn Foliage

• reliable, uniform golden yellow color
• one of the best of the commonly grown birches

Flowers

• blooms in April
• monoecious: male catkins 2" to 3" long in bloom, in groups of 4(3-8); female catkins 1"

Fruit

• tiny winged nutlets (nearly 1 million per pound)

Bark

• young bark reddish-brown to black, with large horizontal lenticels; older bark black, plate-like

Culture

• best on deep, rich, moist, acidic soils, but can also be found on rocky, drier sites and heavy soil
• resistant to bronze birch borer
• best in full sun; tolerates light shade

Landscape Use

• shade tree for parks, naturalized areas, other large sites

Liabilities

• canker; can have a number of other insect and disease problems common to birch, most not problematic
• not a white-barked birch

ID Features

• bruised twigs have wintergreen odor; but taste sweet (B. alleghaniensis tastes bitter)
• slender catkins, usually in 4's (B. alleghaniensis catkins are larger and usually in groups of 5 or more)
• bark reddish-brown when young (B. alleghaniensis has yellow-brown bark)
• older bark black, not exfoliating like B. alleghaniensis
• twigs glabrous (B. alleghaniensis slightly pubescent)

Propagation

• by seed

Cultivars/Varieties

• None