PlantFiles: Silver Birch, Warty Birch, European White Birch, Irish Beith
Betula pendula

I live in Long Island,New York.The tree did great for the first year and then was infected with bronze birch borer.
Unfortunate as it was my favorite tree in a backyard of over 20 trees.

This is a lovely, graceful tree. It grows well in our Zone 10 city gardens (not American so not subject to the pest mentioned in the previous entry).So well it is being overused at the moment, every development seems to be planted with them.
We've grown it from seed. Our tree is now 11 years old and about 15 ft high. The leaves are delicate and constantly on the move, it provides only the lightest of shade. I've been systematically pruning branches off the trunk as it grows, to about a third of the height, the better to enjoy the bark. I understand this should only be done in Winter or the tree will ''bleed'' heavily and be weakened or killed.

Unfortunately, this species as well as white-barked birches in general, usually do not thrive in zone 7 and warmer. They are often killed by the bronze birch borer in those areas of the U.S.A. A more commonly used birch in those warmer areas is a native to the south, Betula nigra - River Birch.

A slim tree native to Europe, Russia and Western Asia.

Has ovate to diamond shaped, pale to mid-green, toothed leaves that turn yellow in autumn. Bears small brown-yellow male catkins. The bark is greyish white and slightly flakes from the tree, as the tree ages the bark breaks giving a diamond pattern at the bottom of the trunk.

Loves moist but well-drained soil in full sun to light shade. It may need some shade during the hottest part of the day in warm regions. In cold regions the twigs may suffer a little from cold drying winds so place in a sheltered spot.

Some European bird species eat the seeds and the sap was once used to tan leather. The young leaves have also been used as a diuretic in the past.