by Jeffrey S. Pippen | Back to Jeff's Plant Page | Jeff's Nature Pages
Betulaceae > Betula | |
Yellow Birch (Betula alleghaniensis) Buncombe Co. NC 7/8/2006 Common in the NC mountains. Scratching the stem of twigs yields a strong and pleasant wintergreen aroma. | |
Yellow Birch (Betula alleghaniensis) Buncombe Co. NC 5/13/2006 | |
Yellow Birch (Betula alleghaniensis) Mt. Mitchell State Park, Yancey Co., NC 13 Sep 2008 | |
Yellow Birch (Betula alleghaniensis) Watauga Co. NC 7/23/2006 The female flowers (upper structures) develop the fruits, while the old male flowers dangle. | |
Yellow Birch (Betula alleghaniensis) Buncombe Co. NC 7/8/2006 Yellow Birch has distinctively appealing bark. | |
Yellow Birch (Betula alleghaniensis) Buncombe Co., NC 4/29/2006 |
Sweet Birch (Betula lenta var. lenta)McDowell Co., NC 13 Sep 2008 Common at low-mid elevations in the western third of North Carolina. | |
Sweet Birch (Betula lenta var. lenta)McDowell Co., NC 13 Sep 2008 Pale lenticels on reddish brown bark. Leaves and twigs give off a delicious wintergreen smell and flavor when injured or chewed. | |
Sweet Birch (Betula lenta var. lenta)McDowell Co., NC 13 Sep 2008 | |
Sweet Birch (Betula lenta var. lenta)McDowell Co., NC 13 Sep 2008 Bark grayish brown to reddish brown (not yellowish) with plates developing in older trees. |
River Birch (Betula nigra) Durham Co., NC 11 Apr 2009 Like other birches, male catkins appear in the fall but the flowers don't open until spring. Fruits of River Birch develop in late spring to early summer. | |
River Birch (Betula nigra) Durham Co., NC 11 Apr 2009 Common statewide in North Carolina, especially along streams and rivers and in floodplains. | |
River Birch (Betula nigra) Durham Co., NC 11 Apr 2009 River Birches are small to medium trees with exfoliating bark that is somewhat salmon-rust colored and vaguely looks like a bunch of burnt potato chips plastered onto the tree trunk. | |
River Birch (Betula nigra) Durham Co., NC 11 Apr 2009 | |
Mountain Paper Birch (Betula cordifolia) Mt. Mitchell State Park, Yancey Co., NC 13 Sep 2008 Mountain Paper Birch is one of North Carolina's rarest woody plants, known only from the Black Mountains in Yancey Co. | |
Mountain Paper Birch (Betula cordifolia) Mt. Mitchell State Park, Yancey Co., NC 13 Sep 2008 Leaves are generally heart-shaped, seen here with old fruiting catkins. | |
Mountain Paper Birch (Betula cordifolia) Mt. Mitchell State Park, Yancey Co., NC 13 Sep 2008 Bark peels off in large, paper-like strips and is a rich tan on its underside. | |
Mountain Paper Birch (Betula cordifolia) Mt. Mitchell State Park, Yancey Co., NC 13 Sep 2008 Some authorities consider this species to be a variety of Paper Birch (Betula papyrifera). | |
Paper Birch (Betula papyrifera) Quebec, Canada 5 Aug 2005 Not found in NC, Paper Birch is an icon of the Northern Woods, growing in Canada and some of the northern bordering US states. The distinctive bark peels off in large sheets and has been used as a medium for writings and drawings. |
Paper Birch (Betula papyrifera) Washington Co., ME 6 July 2011 | |
Paper Birch (Betula papyrifera) St. Clair Co., MI 7 July 2012 | |
Paper Birch (Betula papyrifera) St. Clair Co., MI 7 July 2012 | |
Paper Birch (Betula papyrifera) St. Clair Co., MI 7 July 2012 | |
Paper Birch (Betula papyrifera) Washington Co., ME 6 July 2011 | |
Paper Birch (Betula papyrifera) Washington Co., ME 6 July 2011 Like most birches, younger stems have prominent, pale lenticels and reddish-brown bark. | |
Paper Birch (Betula papyrifera) Quebec, Canada 5 Aug 2005 |
Annotated habitat and distribution information listed above is from Radford, Ahles, & Bell. 1968. Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas. UNC Press; and from personal observations and discussions with Will Cook, Harry LeGrand, and Bob Wilbur. Common names from personal experience and supplemented by the following resources USDA plants website, Flora of the Carolinas, Virginia, and Georgia, and NatureServe.
Created on ... July 16, 2006 | jeffpippen9@gmail.com