Sweet Birch

LEAVES: Alternate, simple, about 3½” long, unevenly sawtoothed, dull green above, yellow-green beneath with some white hairs where the veins join the midrib. The leaf base is usually heart-shaped.

TWIGS: Green and somewhat downy when young, becoming reddish-brown, smooth and shiny. They have a strong wintergreen flavor and smell. Buds reddish brown, conical, sharp-pointed and shiny.

FRUIT: A very small, winged nut. As in the other birches, nuts together with small scales, form a cone-like structure, (the strobile), about 1½” long.

BARK: Tight, dark reddish brown on younger trees, marked with horizontal lines of pale lenticels and often resembles the bark of young Black cherry. On older trees the bark breaks into large black plates.

GENERAL: Also known as Black birch or Cherry birch, this tree normally attains heights of 50 to 60 feet and is found on a variety of sites from rich fertile lowlands to rocky ridges throughout the state. The heavy, hard, strong wood is used for furniture, boxes, and fuelwood. Distillation of the bark and twigs produces an oil sold as a substitute for wintergreen. Fermented sap can be used to make birch beer. Ruffed grouse feed on buds and seeds, deer and rabbits browse the twigs.