HARDWOOD RECORD 



AMERICAN FOREST TREES. 



Yellow Birch. 

 Jietula lutea. — Miehx. 

 The range of growth of yellow birch is 

 from Newfoundland and along the northern 

 shores of the gulf of St. Lawrence to the 

 Eainy river; it extends southward into 

 Minnesota and down to eastern Tennessee; 



UOWTH YELLOW BIRCH. 



( ast again in its southern range to North 

 Carolina and Delaware, covering the states 

 embraced within the boundaries named. 



The name yellow birch is most commonly 

 applied to this species, and as such it is 

 known in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, 

 Massachusetts, Conneaticut, Khode Island, 



SEVE.NTV-FOURTH PAPER. 



Xew York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, North 

 CaroUna, South Carolina, Illinois, Michigan, 

 Jlinnesota, North Dakota and Ontario; how- 

 ever, in Vermont, Rhode Island, Pennsyl- 

 vania, Michigan and Minnesota it is known 

 as gray birch; swamp birch is the term some- 

 times used in Minnesota, and silver birch in 

 New Hampshire; the Canadian French name 

 for the tree is merisier, or merisier rouge as 

 it is known in Quebec. 



The yellow biich is not ordinarily a large 

 tree, and in its southern range sometimes 

 attains only the dimensions of a shrub. Occa- 

 sionally it reaches a height of 100 feet under 

 favorable circumstances, with a trunk three 

 or four feet through. It thrives best in rich, 

 moist uplands and reaches its highest de- 

 velopment in the North, particularly in the 

 region of the Great Lakes. 



The tree when growing alone forms a 

 broad, round top with slender, drooping 

 branches, but when in the forest mingled 

 with beech, maple, ash and elm, is of more 

 compact appearance. The distinguishing 

 feature of the tree is its wonderful bark. 

 Says Mathews: "There are few trees which, 

 like the yellow birch may boast of bark with 

 a texture like satin and a sheen Uke silver. 

 Those horizontal marks which characterize 

 the Bcttila family are sprinkled over its deli- 

 cate, silvery covering; notice the way the 

 thin bark is curled and frizzled away from 

 the trunk; it ornaments the latter with a 

 thousand shining edges, which catch and hold 

 the scattered, flickering sunlight of the woods 

 so that the tree is distinctly separated from 

 its stalwart, duU-hued, rough-seamed neigh- 

 bors. Indeed, the yellow birch possesses a 

 certain unmistakable femininity of character 

 nliich is suggestive of some tattered and dis- 

 lifvcled woodland nymph." 



It is from the bark that the name yellow 

 birch is derived — lutea meaning yellow and 

 applying to the inner layer — this tint will 

 identify the tree from others of its family, 

 although the outer bark is graj-ish. 



The leaves of the tree are three to four 

 inches long, sharply serrate and pointed, the 

 veins conspicuous and hairy beneath. In 

 lolor they are a dull, dark green, with yel- 

 lowish-green lining; in autumn they turn a 

 delicate yellow. 



The flowers of yellow birch appear in 

 April, before the leaves; the staminate ones 

 form in catkins three to four inches long, 

 of a yellowish color, while the pistillate are 

 reddish green and hairy, in catkins only little 

 over half an inch in length. 



The fruit is a stout green cone about an 

 inch long, with narrow tapering scales; the 

 seeds beneath are tiny and winged. 



Yellow birch is a very desirable ornamental 

 tree, but for some reason is seldom planted. 

 The heartwood is light reddish-brown, the 

 sapwood nearly white; it is very close 

 grained, with compact structure. The wood 

 is heavy, strong and hard; it is tough, but 



is not durable when exposed to the weather. 

 It takes a high polish, and with its beautifu! 

 grain it seems a pity it is used mostly for 

 numberless small articles, for mallets, frames 

 of sledges, etc. A cubic foot of seasoned yel- 

 low birch timber weighs forty pounds. It is 

 a beautiful and little appreciated wood for 

 interior use, and one of the best all-around 

 timber trees; in fact, it is almost indispen- 

 sable to certain woodworking industries, and 



'i'ANGEN 



W BIUCH. 



no satisfaclMiv ^i.l.iiul.Il i,,.^^ Ij.cn found for 

 it in the manufacture of a number of small 

 articles. For instance, nearly every spool 

 used in this country is made of this wood, or 

 the paper birch; and quantities are shipped 

 to England in the form of bars. Yellow 

 birch holds its shape well after being seas- 

 oned, works easily, and yet is not easily 

 dented; it also presents a clean, smooth sur- 

 face when turned, qualities which are neces- 

 sary in work of this nature. For shoe pegs 

 and shanks it is much used, and also for 

 toothpicks, which consume a much larger 

 amount of lumber than would be supposed at 

 first thought. Dowel and novelty mills em- 

 ploy the wood extensively, as do bobbin and 

 shuttle manufacturers; for cart hubs it is 

 also popular. Yellow birch takes a fine 

 polish, and makes a handsome hardwood floor, 

 or excellent interior finish — so it will be seen 

 that the uses of the tree are legion, and wide- 

 Iv diversified. 



