Hansen's Northwest Native Plant Database

 

Kingdom	:	Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom	:	Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision	:	Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division	:	Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class	:	Magnoliopsida – Dicotyledons
Subclass	:	Hamamelididae
Order	:	Fagales
Family	:	Betulaceae – Birch family
Genus	:	Betula L. – birch
Species	:	Betula glandulosa Michx. – resin birch

Scrub Birch is a good lowland ornamental with shrubby habit and grows in wet places in the wild. A likely choice if you have a damp area in your yard. Red Birch has shiny red-brown bark that does not peel.

Smaller than Paper Birch, Red Birch is very nice when a smaller tree is desired. The bark is quite lovely year round.

This shrub is similar to the Paper Birch tree, but develops multiple stems and reaches only 6 - 8.’

Bog Birch likes moisture and is found in boggy areas throughout central to northern United States, along the entire Pacific coast and north across Canada to the Arctic and into Greenland.

It is hardy to USDA zone 2.

In the northernmost stretches of its range it remains stunted at only 6-8.”

Here, in the muskegs of the permafrost, this shrub provides critical habitat and browse for wildlife.

It has tiny, glossy, oval leaves from ¼ - 1” long and twigs with noticeable resin glands (hence the Latin, “glandulosa”).