Gray birch (Betula populifolia) Plants

This fast-growing birch can be identified by its bright white bark as a sapling and glossy green triangular leaves that turn yellow in the fall. Birds eat the seeds and sap, and the multi-trunked thickets provide cover for small animals. These birches host the Eastern Tiger Swallowtail larvae, a stunning yellow and black striped butterfly (males) and a deep brown with bluish tings (females). Gray birch wood is easy to work with and often used for small bowls or spools.