Betula ermanii
Erman's Birch
Description
Betula ermanii is unusual in the United Kingdom and is grown for its beautiful peeling bark which is white, tinged with pale pink and cream. Long catkins adorn the branches in late spring and the delicate, pale green leaves in spring / summer turn bright yellow in a good, crisp autumn. An extremely hardy Birch and especially attractive when grown as a multi stemmed tree!
Features
- Common name: Erman's Birch
- Position: Full sun.
- Soil: Any fertile soil.
- Hardiness: Hardy.
- Rate of Growth: Moderate to vigorous.
- Habit: Medium sized, slender tree.
- Height: 20 m
- Spread: 10 m
- Supplied Size: 180 - 200 cm in 3L containers
Plant Video
A short video clip taken of a specimen plant in our own gardens. This tree is around 16 years old and in fact consists of three separate Betula ermanii which were planted together in the same hole initially and allowed to grow together to create a splendid three trunked look.
Further Information
This beautiful birch with creamy pink bark and golden yellow autumn colours is a native of North Eastern Asia, including Eastern Russia, Manchuria, Sakhalin and Northern Japan (Hokkaido).
Betula ermanii is named in honour of a remarkable German physicist, Adolph Erman, (1806-1877), who journeyed from Berlin to Eastern Russia on foot and horseback.
He was principally interested in the earth's magnetism but recorded his fantastic adventure in a superb account of his journey titled 'Travels in Siberia Including Excursions Northwards, Down the Obi, to The Arctic Circle and Southwards to the Chinese frontier', still available as an English translation from specialist bookshops.
Extract from an information poster in our arboretum