Betula pendula – Silver Birch

  A deciduous tree native to a wide area of Europe, including the British isles and Ireland. Silver Birch is often planted ornamentally due to its pleasant silvery bark which can be appreciated all year round. Silver Birch also grows very quickly making it a popular choice for ornamental planting. The tree is slender with a narrow tapering crown, which can acquire a weeping habit when mature, especially when in an open and un-crowded area.

  It’s bark is thick and becomes deeply fissured in older trees, often creating a diamond pattern on its trunk. Higher up the tree the bark is a smooth silvery-white sometimes flaking revealing a greyer under-layer. Silver birch leaves toothed and triangular, growing up to around 7cm in length, turning golden yellow in Autumn.

  Birch woodlands tend to be rich in fungi, some fungi are associated with the tree almost exclusively. It is an early coloniser, a pioneer plant, however does not compete well with more vigorous species. In the wild it tends to invasively occupy heathland areas covering large areas quite quickly due to its fast growth.