Birch tree advice, and other madness.

14 years ago

I'm considering Whitespire birch and Dura-Heat River Birch trees. I got the idea for the Whitespire by reading that it is birch borer resistant. Also, my girlfriend is of Russian and New Hampshire background, and likes white birches. I recently saw that New Hampshire is covered with white birches, probably paper birches, right?. They look impressive, but I keep reading about the borer. As for the Dura Heat River Birches, I know they aren't white, but reports seem to suggest dense leaves, which I like. For either, I'm considering buying them from a mail order outfit "FF" on the upper West Coast that has done well for me in the past. With shipping and handling, a 5-6 foot tree runs me around $106. If I go the nursery route, it would probably be a generic river birch or white barked himalayan birch for about $220. These trees would be real trees, around 15 feet tall, while the sticks from FF won't look like trees for awhile. Any advice on these trees? Are clumps or single trees a better approach?

Let me also mention the situation just for fun. Last October, a 100 foot plus Norway maple street tree was taken down by the city due to losing a limb in a windstorm. While the limb didn't fall on my property, they dumped the tree square on my land, ripping my European Hornbeam tree in half and also badly damaging a Forest Pansy Redbud. When the dust settled, the right side of my property became a disaster area. I managed to get a pittance back from the city, and have my work cut out for me now. On a positive note, I now have more sun for whatever I plant.

Thanks for your advice!

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Comments (5)

mainegrower
14 years ago
In general, birches do much better in cold climates than in warm ones. If you have lots of summer days in the upper 80's/90's with warm nights, most birches will struggle and be even less long lived than this genus is naturally.

I'm sure you would be able to find named birch cultivars at nurseries near you. The West Coast mailorder company you mention is one of the best, but it does seem a little strange to ship something across the entire country when it's available locally. Whether single tree or clump is entirely a matter of personal taste.
iforgotitsonevermind
14 years ago
Jacquemonti birch is the common garden variety white/silver leaved birch. Trudy will love it.
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suel41452
14 years ago
Jacquemontis are gorgeous, but highly susceptible to BBBorers. I've noticed quite a few in front lawns here that have croaked after about 10 yrs. or so.
I bought a "Renci" birch - because it's supposed to be less susceptible to BBBs - as a 3ft. baby at this link:
http://www.advancedtree.com/tree_paperbirch.htm
It's been real healthy so far, and the bark (tree's at 12 ft. now) is super white.
. I've read generic river birches drop a lot of stuff; twigs, etc., - supposedly Heritage RBs don't.
I apply Bayer's Tree and Shrub soil drench (you only apply it once a year) to my birches. It is a systemic insecticide that is supposed to kill BBBs, Birch leafminers, adult Japanese beetles, and a host of other pests.
adrian_monk2
Original Author
14 years ago
Went to the nursery today and saw one Jacquemonti that might work somewhere for me. The thing is, Trudy also says she likes "black spots" on her birches. This tree is pretty much all white. I think it looks good though, but approval will be needed.

aside- We went a little crazy last year planting "sticks" after the incident, including a tiny Whitespire birch and Size 5 American Hornbeam. There was a sense of imbalance with the street tree gone that had dominated the right side of the lawn. The 5 foot stick helped a little, but I'm thinking I need real trees now. It's a bit of a messy stick jungle now.

Anyway, decided today to replace the decimated European Hornbeam with another one at the nursery that looked up to the job.
I need the screening from the neighbors across the street who built a porch facing my front door. It gets complicated beyond that. The forest pansy took a major hit to the central leader, but still appears to be a viable tree after the broken section was pruned off. The thing is, the red leaves in June kind of blended into my brownish house, and it didn't seem to work in this prime spot as I thought. I am tempted to move it somewhere and put a jaquemonti (if approved) or some other birch there. I get a lot of resistance when talking about moving things, "just let it be..plant around it.. blah, blah", but that has a way of preventing definitive action :)
arbordave (SE MI)
14 years ago
Sue from VA is correct - jacquemonti birch is definitely susceptible to borers and should be avoided. Renci (= Renaissance Reflection) does have white bark and is borer resistant, but is not widely available.

Whitespire is also susceptible to borers.

If you opt for river birch, be sure to get Dura-Heat or one of the other improved varieties (Heritage, City Slicker).