Skip to the profile
THE GARDEN SAGEA library of living things
Trees & woodland lore · Western North Carolina field companion

Yellow birch

Betula alleghaniensis

Betula alleghaniensis. Taxon reference; photograph alone does not establish a named cultivar.
Betula alleghaniensis. Taxon reference; photograph alone does not establish a named cultivar.☀ Full sun · ◐ Part sun or part shadeAnnalei Salo ↗ · CC BY-SA 3.0
Photo contextResized and converted to WebP; no diagnostic content altered.

Cool-moist mountain native; avoid hot, dry, compacted sites.

Sun Exposure
Full sun–part shade
MATURE HEIGHT (FT)
50–75
MATURE WIDTH (FT)
30–50
BLOOM SEASON
Spring
Open in the illustrated book →

Get to know this plant.

Identification clue 1

Bronze to golden peeling bark

Identification clue 2

Oval doubly toothed leaves

Identification clue 3

Small upright seed catkins

Read the leaves

Leaves have a pointed tip and strong side veins ending in teeth. Larger teeth bear smaller teeth.

More growing details

Read the bark

Thin bronze-gold strips peel from young and middle-aged trunks; old trunks become rougher.

Fruit & seed

Small upright woody fruiting catkins release winged seeds.

Winter character

Golden peeling bark and fine alternate twigs are valuable winter clues.

Origin & place

The species occurs naturally in the southern Appalachian region; a planted specimen is not evidence of wild local origin.

Compare with River birch

River birch often has more triangular or diamond-shaped leaves and pinkish curling bark.

WNC Notes

Cool-moist mountain native; avoid hot, dry, compacted sites.

Sun Exposure

Full sun–part shade

MATURE HEIGHT (FT)

50–75

MATURE WIDTH (FT)

30–50

BLOOM SEASON

Spring

BLOOM COLOR

Catkins

FALL / WINTER COLOR

Yellow

Wet-Soil Tolerance

Moderate–high

Drought Tolerance

Low

LOOK CLOSELY

Two views, a closer look.

Place two photographs beside one another. Compare the overall plant with leaves, flowers, or bark when those views are available. Captions identify what each photograph actually shows. Images are not at the same scale; species references may show different cultivars.

Betula alleghaniensis. Taxon reference; photograph alone does not establish a named cultivar.
Betula alleghaniensis. Taxon reference; photograph alone does not establish a named cultivar.☀ Full sun · ◐ Part sun or part shadeAnnalei Salo ↗ · CC BY-SA 3.0
Photo contextResized and converted to WebP; no diagnostic content altered.
Developing upright fruiting catkins of yellow birch — species reference; cultivar identity not inferred.
Developing upright fruiting catkins of yellow birch — species reference; cultivar identity not inferred.☀ Full sun · ◐ Part sun or part shadeEl Grafi ↗ · CC BY-SA 3.0
Photo contextResized and converted to WebP; full original composition retained.

Your margin of the garden.

Saved only in this browser on this device. Export your notes from My garden in the library.