Paper Birch, Canoe Birch

Betula papyrifera


Of the two birches whose bark is colored white, it is gray birch that is very common in Plymouth County and generally in eastern Massachusetts. The other native species with white bark, paper birch is a northerner in our flora: common in Vermont and New Hampshire, it has been seldom seen around in southeastern Massachusetts, being sensitive to our summer/early fall droughts and lack of snow in winter. That's why we are so excited to be able to observe a beautiful paper birch here, in Alper Preserve!

How do we know if it is paper birch or gray?
In paper birch, bark is colored bright white, peeling in horizontal strips that are pinkish orange on underside. Bark in gray birch is tight (never peeling) and looks duller due to presence of multiple dark lenticels (horizontal breathing pores). Black triangles marking origins of large branches also contribute to darkening the general color range of the bark. Leaves of the two birches differ by their silhouette: in paper birch they are rounded at base, with a short-pointed tip, while in gray birch leaves are triangular (deltoid), with a more or less straight base line and a long and narrow tip. Gray birch has one unique character: its pollen catkins (the drooping congregations of staminate flowers that produce pollen) never form groups, each catkin remaining solitary. In all other birches including paper birch, pollen catkins form small groups.

An important successional tree of the northern forest, readily spreading after fires, logging, or upon abandonment of cultivated land, paper birch has relatively soft, whitish wood, which is used nowadays for small items, such as clothespins, spools, ice cream sticks, and toothpicks. Paper birch also provides pulpwood for paper. Its bark has a high oil content and thus is waterproof. It was used by Native Americans for a wide variety of projects including birch bark canoes. It is still used for various purposes, especially for basket-making in Canada and Alaska.


See all photos for this species at salicicola.com


Lake Wampanoag Wildlife Sanctuary, Gardner, March 10


Myles Standish State Forest, Carver, December 11


A paper birch with peeling bark and a gray birch with tight bark on the left. Lake Wampanoag Wildlife Sanctuary, Gardner, May 3


Paper birch is very much recognizable not only by the bark color, but also by the shape of the leaves different from any other birch in our area. Blue Hills Reservation, Canton, May 10


Agawam River Trail, Wareham, June 7


Pollen catkins of paper birch forming groups of 2-3. Center Hill Rd., Plymouth, April 22