| British Columbia Outdoor Wilderness Guide |
PAPER BIRCH
betula papyrifera
- The
Paper Birch is also known as Canoe Birch, Silver
Birch, White Birch
- 'papyrifera'
means "paper bearing" and refers to the bark
UNIQUE
FEATURES:
- Paper
Birch is a small to medium sized tree, with many
stems
- Paper
Birch bark peels off in paper strips
- trees
in the forest have a narrow, oval shaped crown
above a slender trunk
- the
crown is pyramid shaped when the trees are found
in the open
- in
dense stands the lower trunk is largely branch
free so can produce large strips of bark
- Paper
Birch is winter food for many animals and a nesting
site for a number of birds
- Paper
Birch can readily sprout from cut parts
LOCATION:
- Paper
Birch is found throughout BC
- but,
not on the west coast islands or right on the
coastline
- Paper
Birch occurs in uplands, floodplain sites, avalanche
tracks, swamp edges, bogs
- Paper
Birch can grow in a variety of soils
SIZE:
FRUIT:
- nutlets
with wings broader than the seed body
FLOWERS:
- narrow
catkins; female 2 to 4 cm and stand erect at the
branch tip; male are longer and hang below the
branch
- appear
at the time of or before the leaves
- break
up after maturity
LEAVES:
- egg-shaped,
sharp pointed tip
- double-toothed
edges
- dull
green, smooth to hairy with a paler underside
with a downy texture
BARK:
- thin,
white to reddish-brown or copper
- smooth,
marked with brown horizontal slits or lines
- the
reddish-orange inner bark is exposed when the
bark is peeled off, gradually turning black
USES:
- modern
- pulp, sawlogs, veneer logs, paneling, tongue
depressors, cheese boxes, firewood; birch sap:
vinegar or birch beer
- traditional
- bark: baskets, cradles, canoes, wrapping and
storing food, roofing pit houses, snow goggles,
moose calls, toboggans; wood: eating utensils
and dishes; sap: medicine for colds
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