Betula papyrifera var. humilis

Betula papyrifera var. humilis common name is "Paper Birch." I just purchased 50 of these seed and stuck them into cold storage. Was just wondering if anyone had any experience with them.

This message was edited Nov 14, 2004 9:28 AM

I guess this is not common tree anyway. Oh well.

I'm interested to find out what you discover. I just planted 3 Betula Pendula 'Crimson Frost' and I can't wait to live with them next year.

Doss, there is a 15 foot specimen of Crimson Frost near my home. Spectacular plant! I'm surprised more are not being grown in my area. The black-purple leaves and white bark is a fantastic contrast.

Dear Todd, Thanks for the good report! I did a lot of research on the net and photos of them are almost impossible to find.

Are you sure that it's not "Purple Rain"? Purple rain has plain white bark while crimson frost has a bark marked more like a standard birch but the leaves are redder. There is also a Purpurea - the parent which has darker leaves than crimson and the standard bark..Unfortunately the purple cultivars are more prone to birch borers than other cultivars although the crimson frost is more resistant than the other 2. Another reason they might not be grown are that they are a little harder to get. You just don't see them hanging around the nurserys.

You can see I did some homework. I have 7 betula pendula on the other side of my house in front of my living room windows - which unfortunately is close to the street. I love to watch them change though the seasons and they filter light but don't make a room dark.

Possum, whatever your birch trees, I am sure that you will love them. They are some of my favorites and it is so hard to get a tree with an upright (rather than spreading) habit, that looks beautiful in groups, has year around interest and that you can plant near your house. They do have shallow roots though so they can really challenge a lawn. There are better lawn trees.

Check to see if you do have birch borers though. You will be spraying forever if you have them in your area because they will kill the trees. I will follow the thread. Good luck. I've never started a tree from seed before you hardy gardener.

I planted a Betula 'Crimson Frost' spring of 2003. It was a little unhappy with our very hot dry summer but still alive. I have hopes for it to take of growing better next spring. Also have a clump ( I planted 3 together) of Betula Paper Bark birch, they are 9 years old and doing very well. Orioles built a nest in upper branches this year. Donna

rutholive - I will watch it for heat heat stress then. Right now they are shaded by some very tall (10') shrubs. Hopefully that will help them. But if they are having trouble in zone 5, I'm wondering how they will manage zone 9.

I looked back at my "birch research" and regarding "paper birch" aka Canoe Birch:
Mature height to abouit 80' (from small seeds come tall trees!) Bark is reddish brown on young trees turning to creamy white, peeling to expose an orange inner bark. The wood is strong and hard and used for veneer (You paneling your family room?), And if you're going on a trip you can always stretch it over a frame, stitch it together and seal with white pine resin. The sap and be boiled down for syrup. You can find it in nurserys but evidently, more borer resistant trees have taken its place. Prefers a moist but well drained site, sheltered by other trees. An excellent tree for ornamental use.

There is a recipe for Birch Beer if you want it, but if you are at the seed stage, I don't imagine that it's helpful right now!

Lol Doss

I think I'm a loooong way from making Birch Beer. Thank you for the information. I didn't realize about the Birch Borers. I knew it was a pretty good ornamental tree (to other people anyway) and thought I would give it a try. May I ask what you used to reference this tree? I have a few other trees that I am growing from seed too and would be interested in looking them up using the reference(s) that you did. I have read that Birches respond well to supplemental lighting and may reach upto 3 feet in the first years growth. I think that is pushing the plant a little to hard myself but I'm thinking that I can have a 4-6 foot tree in a matter of 2-3 years. (crossing my fingers).

You won't have to wait 3 years if you start from 3 feet. These trees are very fast growers, and though they are not supposed to be long-lived, I have some very healthy ones that are in their 30s. I have to tell you that I just surf the net to find info. I very often end up right back at Dave's Garden. It's the place with the pictures. I can look on my favorites but my guess is that I don't have the info there since I made a hard copy. I was at it for hours and never did find a picture of 'purple rain' but I found just one picture of 'crimson frost'.

I do have a good garden file though. The truth is it's mostly slog work. If you need any help though let me know.

Thanks for the information Doss that is basically how I do it when I can't find the information in Dr. Dirr's book (or at least enough information). I was hoping for a wonderful cure all solution that does not exist. But hey, let a guy have his dreams. :)

Dream on. It might make you rich!!!!! At the rate computing is growing, in 10 years it will be a whole different story. In the meantime, we can use our pathetic (LOL) technology and grind out the answers. Once in junior high school I did a project about the solar system from an outdated encyclopedia. Well, Pluto wasn't there yet and I got graded down. Can you imagine that now? The funny thing is that now they're really not sure whether or not Pluto is really a planet/ : )

Do you grow things from seed generally?

Generally speaking this is the first time I am trying to grow things from seed. I also played with a few cuttings this summer. The seed stratification periods seem to be the hardest thing so far to get down.