Betula pubescens (syn. Betula alba), commonly known as downy birch and also as moor birch, white birch, European white birch or hairy birch, is a species of deciduous tree, native and abundant throughout northern Europe and northern Asia, growing farther north than any other broadleaf tree. It is closely related to, and often confused with, the silver birch (B. pendula), but grows in wetter places with heavier soils and poorer drainage; smaller trees can also be confused with the dwarf birch (B. nana).
Six varieties are recognised and it hybridises with the silver and dwarf birches. A number of cultivars have been developed but many are no longer in cultivation. The larva of the autumnal moth (Epirrita autumnata) feeds on the foliage and in some years, large areas of birch forest can be defoliated by this insect. Many fungi are associated with the tree and certain pathogenic fungi are the causal agents of birch dieback disease.
The tree is a pioneer species, readily colonising cleared land, but later being replaced by taller, more long-lived species. The bark can be stripped off without killing the tree and the bark and the timber is used for turnery and in the manufacture of plywood, furniture, shelves, coffins, matches, toys and wood flooring. The inner bark is edible and it was ground up and used in bread-making in times of famine. The rising sap in spring can be used to make refreshing drinks, wines, ales and liqueurs and various parts of the tree have been used in herbal medicine.
^Shaw, K.; Roy, S.; Wilson, B. (2017) [errata version of 2014 assessment]. "Betula pubescens". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2014: e.T194521A116337224. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2014-3.RLTS.T194521A2344298.en.
^"Betula pubescens Ehrh". Plants of the World Online. Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 8 April 2021.
Betulapubescens (syn. Betula alba), commonly known as downy birch and also as moor birch, white birch, European white birch or hairy birch, is a species...
NVC community W11 (Quercus petraea - Betulapubescens - Oxalis acetosella woodland) is one of the woodland communities in the British National Vegetation...
swaths in the typical mixed deciduous forests dominated by downy birch (Betulapubescens) and sessile oak (Quercus petraea), by sycamore maple (Acer pseudoplatanus)...
triterpenes extracted from the outer bark of silver birch (Betula pendula) and downy birch (Betulapubescens). The most common side effects include wound complications...
forest in Qinngua Valley is a thicket consisting mainly of downy birch (Betulapubescens) and gray-leaf willow (Salix glauca), growing up to 7–8 metres (23–26 ft)...
grows abundantly in the typical deciduous forest with downy birch (Betulapubescens), common wood sorrel (Oxalis acetosella), and sessile oak (Quercus...
beneficial minerals. In Nordic countries, its hosts include white birch (Betulapubescens), silver birch (B. pendula), European aspen (Populus tremula) and rarely...
NVC community W2 (Salix cinerea - Betulapubescens - Phragmites australis woodland) is one of the woodland communities in the British National Vegetation...
Adults are on wing from June to mid-July. The larvae feed on Betula nana and Betulapubescens czerepanovii. They mine the leaves of their host plant. Fauna...
fungal plant pathogen. In Iceland it is common on the dead leaves of Betulapubescens and Salix lanata. List of Mycosphaerella species Helgi Hallgrímsson...
NVC community W17 (Quercus petraea - Betulapubescens - Dicranum majus woodland) is one of the woodland communities in the British National Vegetation...
decidua), Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris), Populus tremula, Betula pendula, Betulapubescens, and sycamore maple (Acer pseudoplatanus). Nearly pure stands...
The area above the conifer treeline is made up of mountain birch Betulapubescens-czerepanovii (fjellbjørkeskog). The Scots pine reaches its altitudinal...
caused by wave and wind action. Here woody plants, such as downy birch (Betulapubescens), and other species of plant, e.g. purple moor grass (Molinia caerulea)...
most common tree native to Greenland is the European white birch (Betulapubescens) along with gray-leaf willow (Salix glauca), rowan (Sorbus aucuparia)...
latitude and altitude, is an area where only a smaller kind of birch (Betulapubescens or B.tortuosa) can grow. Where this vegetation zone ends, no trees...
Betula celtiberica, the Iberian white birch, is a species of flowering plant in the family Betulaceae, native to Great Britain and northwestern Spain....
livestock. The most common tree native to Iceland is the northern birch (Betulapubescens), which formerly formed forests over much of Iceland, along with aspens...
Rainforest is dominated by sessile oak (Quercus petraea), downy birch (Betulapubescens) and European ash (Fraxinus excelsior). Other trees include pedunculate...
Global Information
