THE GRAY BIRCH 



OVER a large part of the great area which the botanists characterize as the region 

 of the birches, the Gray Birch is the most abundant tree. It springs up every- 

 where, its minute seeds being scattered far and wide by the wind during many 

 months of the year. It thrives especially on sandy land, where many other trees find it 

 difficult to get a start, and serves a useful purpose as a cover for the growth of more valuable 

 species. It is one of the first trees to take possession of abandoned pasture lands. 



The distinguishing characteristics of the Gray Birch are to be found in the triangular 

 leaves with acuminate tips and doubly serrate margins, the slender, pendulous pollen- 

 bearing catkins which are usually solitary on the ends of the twigs, and the erect, linear 

 seed-bearing catkins projecting from the sides of the twigs, as well as in the close white 

 bark with heavy black markings running downward at the junction of the branches. 



This tree has long been a favorite with the artists and poets. It has to a peculiar 

 degree that delicate grace of leaf and branch which appeals so strongly to the aesthetic 

 sense. Being found in copses and along the borders of the forests, it forms an important 

 element in our landscape pictures. The varnished leaves reflect the sunlight in a most 

 distinctive manner, while the slender stems cause the position of the blades to be shifted 

 by the slightest breeze. These qualities led Lowell to write 



" Thy shadow scarce seems shade, thy pattering leaflets 

 Sprinkle their gathered sunshine o'er my senses 

 And Nature gives me all her summer confidences." 



The Gray Birch seldom attains a large size. A height of thirty-five feet and a 

 diameter of eight inches are commonly its extreme dimensions, although occasionally it 

 grows much larger. It is a wonderfully adaptable tree, and is easily modified by its envi- 

 ronment. Growing in good soil in open ground, it attains a symmetrical outline of great 

 beauty and delicacy and well deserves more general planting by landscape gardeners. 

 Young trees are easily found in the fields and along the borders of woods and may readily 

 be transplanted. 



In addition to the name Gray Birch, this species is often called White Birch, Small 

 White Birch, Poplar Birch, Poverty Birch, and Oldfield Birch. It was happily named 

 Betula populifolia by Marsh, on account of the aspen-like effect of its leaves. The species 

 occurs abundantly over a large part of New England and the Middle States. 



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