Tried and True Native Plant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic
Betula nigra is more disease-free and better adapted to heat than other birches. The foremost cultivar, Betula nigra ‘Cully’ (also sold as HERITAGE®), exfoliates more heavily than the species and other cultivars, with a greater combination of outer bark colors and a light—sometimes almost white—inner bark. As a bonus, it is vigorous and extremely resistant to bronze birch borer. Planted as a lawn or specimen tree or in a naturalized setting, this birch draws attention in all seasons.
Noted for beautiful, exfoliating bark and multiple trunks, River or Red Birch is an excellent food source for wildlife, supporting hundreds of species of moths,
butterflies, and songbirds. It is commonly found in the Piedmont and Coastal Plain of the Mid-Atlantic Region from Pennsylvania to Virginia.