What is the botanical name of the silver birch? How many types are there? How old can a silver birch get? We clarify these and other questions in our guide, which includes a brief profile of the silver birch and descriptions of some special features.
Silver birch sap is good for hair and body
Characteristics of the silver birch
- Name: silver birch, silver birch, silver birch
- Botanical name: Betula alba, Betula pendula, Betula verrucosa
- Family: Birch family (lat. Betulaceae)
- Tree species: deciduous tree
- Use: garden tree, park tree, street tree, forest tree, pioneer plant
- Distribution: Central Europe
- Height: 10 to 25 meters
- Leaves: Arranged alternately, oval to slightly triangular, ovate, tapering, serrate leaf edges, up to 7 cm long, golden yellow autumn colour
- Frequency: monoecious, separating sexes
- Flowers: male catkins conspicuous yellow, female flowers rather inconspicuous, flowering period from March to May, -cross-pollination, pollination by wind
- Fruit: hanging catkins, small brown-yellow nut, 2 to 3 mm, winged, August to September
- Twigs: thin, drooping
- Bark: white, black longitudinal cracks
- wood: hard
- Root: Shallow (very shallow and wide)
- Location: sunny to light semi-shady
- Soil: dry to slightly moist, sandy to loamy
- pH value: acidic to slightly alkaline
- Age: up to 150 years
Special facts about birch
Here are some more impressive properties of the silver birch that refer to
- the growth habit
- the birch wood and
- the birch water
relate.
growth habit
The silver birch has a long, straight trunk and a loose crown. It also has acute-angled branches and overhanging twigs - typical features of this tree species. In young trees, the bark is still black-brown to grey. Only later does the trunk of the silver birch take on its characteristic shape and present itself as white unrolling. In rare cases, the silver birch reaches a height of 30 meters. The trunk can grow up to 80 cm thick.
Birch wood
Under the bark, the silver birch houses its white to white-yellow wood. There are hardly any differences in color between the heartwood and sapwood. Birch wood is difficult to split - it is elastic and shrinks a lot. For these reasons, it is less suitable as lumber. Instead, it is often used as veneer wood. It is not uncommon for chairs, tables, clogs or ladders to be made from silver birch wood. Birch wood is difficult to store because it often yellows or stains quickly.
birch water
The bleeding sap of the birch is still used today as a hair tonic. Sometimes it is also processed into jelly or birch wine (birch lemonade). Perhaps you have already come across a bottle of it in your trusted drugstore.