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RIVER BIRCH (Red Birch) {Betula nigra L.) 



THIS is the only native birch found at low eleva- 

 tions in the South. It is at home, as the name im- 

 plies, along water courses, and inhabits the deep, 

 rich soils along the borders of streams, ponds, lakes, 

 and swamps which are sometimes inundated for 

 weeks at a time. 



The bark provides a ready means of distinguish- 

 ing this tree. It varies from reddish brown to cinna- 



RIVER BIRCH 



One-third natural size. 



mon-red in color, and peels back in tough papery 

 layers. These layers persist on the trunk, present- 

 ing a very ragged and quite distinctive appearance. 

 Unlike the bark of our other birches, the thin papery 

 layers are usually covered with a gray powder. On 

 older trunks, the bark on the main trunk becomes 

 thick, deeply furrowed, and of a reddish-brown 

 color. 



The leaves are simjile, alternate, 2 to 3 inches 

 long, more or less oval in shape, with double-toothed 

 edges. The upper surface is dark green and the 

 lower a pale yellowish green. 



The flowers are in catkins, the two kinds grow- 

 ing on the same tree. The fruit is cone-shaped 

 about 1 inch long, and densely crowded with little 

 winged nutlets that ripen from May to June. 



The wood is strong and fairly close-grained. It 

 has been to some extent used in the manufacture 

 of woodenware, in turnery and for wagon hubs. 

 Since, however, this tree is scattered in its distribu- 

 tion and mostly confined to the banks of streams, it 

 does not figure largely in commercial lumbering, 

 but is cut chiefly for firewood. 



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