Birches brighten the stark landscape of winter > Look for Betula varieties at nurseries for planting in the spring

Once snow dominates the winter landscape in Maine, we have to inspect our surroundings carefully to find other features of equal beauty. Whether you love or loathe the sight of snow on your steps and in your driveway during the winter months, you might at least admit that the sparkling snow in the early morning light is a beautiful sight.

When we focus on the snow during these cold months, the rest of the landscape falls into the background — a bit out of our focus. Most of the landscape familiar in the summer months has been buried. Herbaceous plants and small shrubs are nowhere to be seen. Deciduous trees are not much more than wiry outlines against the gray sky. Perhaps the towering evergreens are the only things that match, in mass and abundance, the effect of the snow. Other trees are more obscured by the snow cover, but, if sought out, prove to be of equal beauty.

One group of trees perhaps most easily appreciated during the winter are the birches. Some gardeners think of birches as somewhat mundane, although this may be true only during spring, summer and fall when there is a plethora of other natural beauties to admire. But birches offer beauty during the winter, at a time when few other trees compete for our attention.

You are likely to find specimens of three different birches — paper birch, river birch and yellow birch — at local nurseries in the spring. All make wonderful additions to the Maine landscape during the winter months. Paper birch, Betula papyrifera, is undoubtedly the most common in northern New England and is as much a unique symbol of New England as the covered bridge. Perhaps most stunning when found in natural groves, the paper birch provides interest in the winter landscape because of its crisp white bark and its fine branching pattern. Paper birches grow best in full sun and cool, moist, acidic soil. They are shallow-rooted and will not stand up to root compaction, so if you choose to plant one, be sure that it is well out of the way of traffic.

Yellow birch, Betula alleghaniensis, also makes a striking addition to the winter landscape. This birch, unlike most others, is shade-tolerant. Where other birches are quick to inhabit disturbed areas and are relatively short-lived, yellow birches are long-lived. According to Guy Sternberg and Jim Wilson in their new book, “Landscaping with Native Trees,” one yellow birch in Deer Isle is 76 feet tall and 6 feet 8 inches in diameter. Yellow birch performs well in our cool climates and, although this species is not as common as other birches, its copper-colored bark makes an interesting addition to the landscape.

River birch, Betula nigra, is the third birch with a lot to offer Maine’s winter landscape. It is probably the least common in our climate. Sternberg and Wilson describe the tree as having “a pinkish-tan peeling bark and a spreading crown of several large, ascending limbs that support slightly weeping branches.” Where other birches have smooth-looking bark which appears to curl up around the tree, the bark of river birch sheds off in all directions, creating a rich textural appearance. As its name implies, river birch can tolerate a great deal more soil moisture than other birches and is commonly found along riverbanks.

Although birches are common and characteristic of the north woods, they may have their place in your landscape. Their light color provides contrast and coolness to the summer landscapes and texture and interest to the white winter landscape of Maine.

Diana George Chapin is the NEWS garden columnist. Send horticulture questions to Gardening Questions, c/o MaineWeekend, Bangor Daily News, P.O. Box 1329, Bangor 04402-1329. Selected questions will be answered in future columns. Include name, address and telephone number.