River Birch

Betula nigra L.

Birch family

Plant Type

Tree

Life Cycle

Perennial

Mature Height

70.0 feet

Spread

7.9 feet

Flower Color

Brown

Bloom Time

Mid Spring

Growing Conditions

Light

Shade Tolerance Intolerant

Water

Water Use High

Drought Tolerance Low

Flood Tolerance Medium

Soil

Soil Types Clay, Loam, Sand

CaCO3 Tolerance None

Fertility Need Medium

Stress Tolerance

Fire Tolerance Medium

Salt Tolerance None

Climate

pH Range 3.0 – 6.5

Frost-Free Days 150 days

Precipitation 30 – 80 in

Ecosystem & Wildlife

Pollinators Larval Host (Moth); Wind

Larval Host Acrobasis betuleivorella, Acronicta betulae, Antheraea polyphemus polyphemus, Bucculatrix coronatella, Hyalophora cecropia, Hyphantria cunae, Lymantria dispar, Malacosoma americana, Morrisonia latex, Nemoria bistriaria bistriaria, Nites betulella, Orgyia leucostigma, Parornix conspicuella, Parornix obliterella, Phobetron pithecium, Pseudotelphusa betulella

Fall Color No

Evergreen No

Native Range

USA: Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin

Regional Native Status: L48 (N)

State-level native status is based on data available through Plants of the World Online. Regional Native Status comes from the USDA Plants Database. For more detailed native status information, please refer to BONAP.