Silver Birch Tree – Betula pendula

Description

Features of the Silver Birch tree

Silver Birch trees are tall columnar deciduous trees with a silver white bark and light green triangular shaped drooping leaves with a toothed edge. The Leaves fade to yellow in Autumn. Although the leaves fall off in Autumn months, they still retain a lot of foliage due to their feathery nature. This coverage makes them an ideal tress for boundary screening or for planting though hedges such as Green Beech hedges to add volume and impact in Winter months. They can grow up to 5 metres in height.

They differ from Jacquemontii trees in that the bark turns more silver as the tree matures but the bark of the Jacquemontii tree is a papery white bark.

The silver birch tree produces Flowers are called catkins are that are visible in April and May. They are an Ideal tree to encourage wildlife into the garden, their feathery branches provide a valuable food source for birds in the form of insects and aphids. Their feathery nature also provides shelter, camouflage and security for small birds safe from prey.

They are very adaptable and are also tolerant of variances in temperature. They are fast growing trees, another feature that makes them ideal as a garden or boundary tree.

Silver birch trees are Ideal for all soil types and are typically Sold as bareroot plants and planted in Winter months from November to April. They are hardy in cold weather and will grow well in full sun or partial shade. We grow Silver birch here in our Native Nursery in a range of sizes from 5/6ft trees through to 10ft.

Soil: Any well drained soil.
Status: Hardy in cold weather.
Position: Full sun, partial shade.
Flowering: Catkins in Spring