Betula pubescens

Betula pubescens
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Fagales
Family:	Betulaceae
Genus:	Betula
Subgenus:	Betula subg. Betula
Species:	B. pubescens
Binomial name
Betula pubescens Ehrh.
Distribution map
Synonyms[2]
List Betula acuminata Kindb. Betula alba L. Betula alba var. glabrata (Wahlenb.) Muñoz Garm. & Pedrol Betula alba subsp. glutinosa (Trautv. ex Regel) Holub Betula ambigua Hampe ex Rchb. Betula andreji V.N.Vassil. Betula asplenifolia Regel Betula × aurata var. rhombifolia (Tausch) Tzvelev Betula aurea Steud. Betula baicalia V.N.Vassil. Betula borealis Spach Betula borysthenica Klokov Betula broccembergensis Bechst. Betula browicziana Güner Betula callosa Notø Betula canadensis K.Koch Betula carpatica Waldst. & Kit. ex Willd. Betula caucasica Litv. ex Leskov Betula concinna Gunnarsson Betula coriifolia Tausch ex Regel Betula czerepanovii N.I.Orlova Betula czerepanovii var. nasarovii Tzvelev Betula dalecarlica L.f. Betula glabra Dumort. Betula glauca Wender. Betula glutinosa Wallr. Betula golitsinii V.N.Vassil. Betula hackelii Opiz ex Steud. Betula jacutica V.N.Vassil. Betula krylovii G.V.Krylov Betula × kusmisscheffii (Regel) Sukaczev Betula laciniata Thunb. Betula lenta Du Roi Betula litwinowii Doluch. Betula macrostachya Schrad. ex Regel Betula major Gilib. Betula megaloptera Kindb. Betula microdontia Kindb. Betula murithii Gaudin ex Regel Betula nigricans Wender. Betula odorata Bechst. Betula odorata var. tortuosa (Ledeb.) Rosenv. Betula ovata K.Koch Betula platyodontia Kindb. Betula pontica Loudon Betula pubescens var. appressa Kallio & Y.Mäkinen Betula pubescens subsp. borealis (Spach) Á.Löve & D.Löve Betula pubescens f. columnaris T.Ulvinen Betula pubescens subsp. czerepanovii (N.I.Orlova) Hämet-Ahti Betula pubescens f. hibernifolia T.Ulvinen Betula pubescens f. rubra T.Ulvinen Betula recurvata (I.V.Vassil.) V.N.Vassil. Betula rhombifolia Tausch Betula rotundata Beck Betula sajanensis V.N.Vassil. Betula sokolowii Regel Betula stenocarpa Kindb. Betula subarctica Orlova Betula subarctica var. pojarkovae Tzvelev Betula subodorata Kindb. Betula tomentosa Reitter & Abeleven Betula torfacea (Custor) Schleich. Betula tortuosa Ledeb. Betula transcaucasica V.N.Vassil. Betula tricholepidea Kindb. Betula urticifolia (Loudon) Regel Betula virgata Salisb.

Betula pubescens (syn. Betula alba), commonly known as downy birch and also as moor birch, white birch, European white birch or hairy birch, is a species of deciduous tree, native and abundant throughout northern Europe and northern Asia, growing farther north than any other broadleaf tree. It is closely related to, and often confused with, the silver birch (B. pendula), but grows in wetter places with heavier soils and poorer drainage; smaller trees can also be confused with the dwarf birch (B. nana).

Six varieties are recognised and it hybridises with the silver and dwarf birches. A number of cultivars have been developed but many are no longer in cultivation. The larva of the autumnal moth (Epirrita autumnata) feeds on the foliage and in some years, large areas of birch forest can be defoliated by this insect. Many fungi are associated with the tree and certain pathogenic fungi are the causal agents of birch dieback disease.

The tree is a pioneer species, readily colonising cleared land, but later being replaced by taller, more long-lived species. The bark can be stripped off without killing the tree and the bark and the timber is used for turnery and in the manufacture of plywood, furniture, shelves, coffins, matches, toys and wood flooring. The inner bark is edible and it was ground up and used in bread-making in times of famine. The rising sap in spring can be used to make refreshing drinks, wines, ales and liqueurs and various parts of the tree have been used in herbal medicine.