Sweet Birch (Black Birch)
Betula lenta Medium tree Zones 3–8 40–70 ft
Shares the Appalachians, rich moist slopes and dry uplands in the wild.
A native we do not grow
Paper Birch
Betula papyrifera. Medium tree, 50 to 75 feet, zones 2 to 7; full sun or part shade; dry, average or wet ground.
We do not grow paper birch, and it is not in our shop. This page gathers what our tools say about it and the natives we grow for the same ground.
At a glance
| Other names | White birch, canoe birch, paperbark birch |
|---|---|
| Form | Medium tree |
| Height, feet | 50 to 75 |
| Spread, feet | Up to 50 |
| Zones | 2 to 7 |
| Sun | Full sun or part shade |
| Soil moisture | Dry, average or wet ground |
| Growth | Fast |
| Leaves | Deciduous |
| Traits | Fall color, wildlife value, salt tolerant, winter interest, erosion control |
| Flowers | April to June |
| Fruit | Nutlets, August to November |
| First crop | About 15 years (best from 40 to 70) |
| Pollination | One bears; a second improves the crop. A lone paper birch sets some seed, but selfed seed germinated at 6 to 11 percent against good crosses in a Lake States trial of 1965, so a second tree nearby improves the crop. |
| Lifespan | Typically lives 100 years, and the oldest dated one reached 240. Only a tiny share of trees has ever been ring-counted or cross-dated. |
| Transplanting | The Morton Arboretum's page on paper birch marks it as one that transplants well. |
| Black walnut | Sensitive, on the Morton Arboretum's list as “white birch” |
| Ground | The Appalachians, rich moist slopes, dry uplands, swamps and wet flats |
| Native in | 31 states |
Paper birch is native in 31 states: Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming. The states are the USDA PLANTS Database's records, with the native range read from Silvics of North America and NatureServe Explorer.
What our tools say
How fast it grows and how big it gets, by site Whether it suits your zone, sun and soil How far from a house, wires and a septic field What grows with it in the wild and in a yard When to plant it where you live When it flowers and fruits, month by month How to sow its seed, with dates for your place How many to plant for a crop of seed Whether one you have can be moved, and what the move takes How old one is, from its trunk How a big one scores against the champion trees
For the same ground, we grow
These trees we grow share the most of paper birch's natural communities in the wild, by the companion species tool's rules.
Red Hickory
Carya ovalis Large tree Zones 4–8 60–100 ft
Shares the Appalachians, rich moist slopes and dry uplands in the wild.
Yellow Birch
Betula alleghaniensis Large tree Zones 3–7 60–75 ft
Shares the Appalachians, rich moist slopes, swamps and wet flats in the wild.
Northern Red Oak
Quercus rubra Large tree Zones 3–8 50–75 ft
Shares the Appalachians, rich moist slopes and dry uplands in the wild.
American Chestnut
Castanea dentata Small tree Zones 4–8 15–30 ft
Shares the Appalachians, rich moist slopes and dry uplands in the wild.
Slippery Elm
Ulmus rubra Medium tree Zones 3–9 40–70 ft
Shares rich moist slopes and dry uplands in the wild.
Read from
Its figures come from Silvics of North America, NC State Extension, the Missouri Botanical Garden, the Morton Arboretum, the Wildflower Center, the Forest Service's Fire Effects Information System, the Woody Plant Seed Manual, the USDA PLANTS Database, the US Forest Service and Virginia Tech's dendrology site.