Spring/Summer 2016

Trees to Consider:

River birch

River birch is a species of birch native to the Eastern United States. Its bark is distinctive — usually dark gray-brown to pinkish-brown and scaly, but in some individuals, smooth and creamy pinkish-white, exfoliating in curly papery sheets — making it a favored ornamental tree for landscape use.

Latin Name: Betula nigra

Common Name(s): Black birch, river birch, water birch.

Tree Type: It is considered both a shade tree and an ornamental tree.

Sun and Water Requirements: It does not tolerate shade and does best in moist soils.

Expected growth: 80-100 feet with a trunk 20 to 59 inches in diameter, often has multiple trunks.

Foliage: The leaves are simple and somewhat diamond-shaped. They are medium to dark green and are double-toothed. They turn yellow in the fall.

Flowers: It produces flowers in the spring and winter, and small brown or green cones in the summer.

Landscape Value: River birch is valued for its relatively rapid growth, tolerance of wetness and some drought, unique curling bark, spreading limbs and relative resistance to birch borer.