When do paper birchesturn?

• The Upper Midwest about typical: 4% vs 2% (24 obs.)

Sources: US Forest Service, Fall Colors ↗ (opens in a new tab), US Forest Service, Fire Effects Information System: paper birch ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Sources: USDA Forest Service, Fire Effects Information System: Little's range maps ↗ (opens in a new tab), US Forest Service, Fire Effects Information System: paper birch ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Size

Mature trees are usually 70 to 80 feet tall with trunks 10 to 12 inches across, now and then up to 30 inches. In Alaska they are smaller, commonly 20 to 60 feet.

Lifespan

Short-lived: it stops growing taller at about 60 to 70 years, and few trees live past 140.

Bark and fruit

Reddish-brown on young trees. On mature trees it is thin, white and smooth, often splitting into papery strips that peel off in sheets.

Where it grows best

From the northern limit of trees in arctic Canada and Alaska through the boreal forest to the mixed forests of the Northeast and Lake States. In the mountains of New England and New York it is one of the few hardwoods near timberline. It grows on almost any soil, best on deep, well-drained sandy or silty ground.

Shade

Needs sun: a pioneer that fills burned and logged land, often in pure stands, then lasts only one generation before shade-tolerant conifers or northern hardwoods take over.

Wildlife

One of the five most important moose foods in the East. Deer eat its leaves in fall, snowshoe hares browse the young trees, and porcupines and beavers feed on it. Redpolls, siskins and chickadees get a good share of their year's food from birch seeds, and ruffed grouse eat the catkins and buds. Yellow-bellied sapsuckers drill it for sap, and hummingbirds and red squirrels feed at the sap wells.

People and uses

Native Americans made its bark into canoes, baskets, containers, torches and more. The sap can be made into syrup, wine and beer. A popular landscape tree for its bark and graceful shape.

Source: US Forest Service, Fire Effects Information System: paper birch ↗ (opens in a new tab)

• Katahdin Woods and Waters · MaineSep 1–Oct 15
• Voyageurs · MinnesotaSep 11–20
• Chippewa National Forest · MinnesotaUsually Sep 17–30
• Hiawatha National Forest · MichiganSep 21–30
• Mississippi River, Minneapolis–St. Paul · MinnesotaUsually Sep 24–Oct 7
• Pictured Rocks · MichiganUsually Sep 24–Oct 10
• Aroostook Refuge · MaineUsually Oct 1–10
• Au Sable River · MichiganOct 1–31
• Crawford Notch and Zealand Valley · New HampshireOct 4–10
• White Mountain National Forest · New HampshireOct 4–10
• Pinkham Notch · New HampshireOct 4–10
• Waterville Valley · New HampshireOct 4–10

States: Massachusetts · New Hampshire · Maine · Minnesota · Wisconsin · Michigan

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