Silver birch (Betula pendula) is a deciduous tree with a slender shape and graceful appearance, which has given rise to its lovely name of the ‘lady of the woods’. Silver birch trees look attractive year-round with white bark, spring catkins and yellow autumn leaf colour. The catkins and seeds are popular with wildlife such as bees and birds, while several species of moth lay eggs on birch leaves.
Silver birch trees have an open branch structure that casts only light shade, enabling potential for underplanting around them. This makes them appropriate for all but very small gardens. While single-stemmed trees are most usual, multi stem silver birches are available or are easy to create – these make gorgeous garden feature trees and won’t grow as large as a single tree. Multi-stem birches can even be grown in a large container or raised bed.
Identifying silver birchSilver birch has white bark, which becomes marked with rugged dark cracks as it matures. As the tree grows the bark often peels off in strips. Silver birch leaves are triangular-shaped and green, fading to bright yellow in autumn. In spring, male catkins are 6cm long and brown-yellow, and female catkins catkins are 3cm long and green. If pollinated, female catkins become red-brown in colour and bear masses of tiny, winged seeds.
Betula pendula is the parent of several named, cultivated birches with a variety of ornamental attributes, including different growing shapes and habits. Weeping silver birch (Betula pendula ‘Youngii’) is distinctly different looking, forming a wide-spreading tree of weeping branches.
Size: height and spreadSilver birch growth rate is relatively fast. Ultimate height is likely to be at least 8-10m and with a spread of at least 5m.
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