Yellow Birch

LEAVES: Alternate, simple, 3″-4″ long, doubly-toothed margins, dull green above, yellow-green beneath.

TWIGS: Green and hairy when young later brown and smooth, with only a faint wintergreen flavor and smell. Buds dull yellowish green, slightly downy.

FRUIT: An erect, very short-stalked cone, 1½” long, made up of small, winged nuts and scales.

BARK: Young stems and branches yellowish or bronze and shiny, peeling off in thin papery strips, Older trunks becoming to reddish brown and breaking into large, ragged edged plates.

GENERAL: A medium to large tree, commonly 60′-75′, occasionally to 100′ tall. Prefers moist, cool soils and cool summer temperatures, often found on north facing slopes and swamps. The wood is used for cabinets, furniture, flooring, and doors. It was a principal wood used for distilling wood alcohol, acetate of lime, tar, and oils. The papery shreds of bark can be stripped off in emergencies and used as a fire starter even in wet conditions. Ruffed grouse feed on buds and seeds, deer and rabbits browse the twigs.