For Russians, there is no tree dearer than birch. The word itself appeared back in the 7th century from the verb “protect”. For the ancient Slavs, the symbol of fertility, as well as the protector of people was the deity - Bereginya, which they represented in the form of a birch. In all likelihood, the name of the tree came to us from those ancient times. Do you know how many and what types of birches grow in Russia? Today we have to find out.
Description
Many species of birch trees are trees that reach a height of 30 to 45 meters, the trunk grows up to 150 centimeters in girth, although there are large and small shrubs, including creeping, barely raised above the ground. All representatives of the birch family are monoecious, dioecious, wind-pollinated plants.
The root system of trees of this genus is powerful; it can be either superficial or obliquely extending inward (depending on growing conditions). Fading of the root root of the seedling occurs rather quickly, but the lateral ones with a huge number of thin kidney-shaped roots are rapidly developing. In the early years, birch grows very slowly, but over time it begins to quickly rush upward, gaining victory over grassy vegetation.
The bark of most species is white, yellow, pinkish or reddish-brown, although there are varieties with a gray, brown, and even black outer part of the trunk. Cork tissue cells are filled with easily peelable betulin (a resinous substance of white color). In long-lived trees, quite often in the lower part of the trunk you can see a dark crust with many deep cracks.
The leaves of the representatives of the family are alternate birch, serrated along the edges, whole, ovoid-rhombic or triangular-ovoid in shape, smooth, monosymmetric, 7 centimeters in length, 4 in width.
Types of birches in Russia
We examined a general description of representatives of this genus. Now I would like to dwell on some varieties in more detail. Do you know how many species of birch exist in the world? Biologists have about 120 varieties of slender, white-stemmed, light trees, in Russia, about 65 varieties grow, which differ in some signs. No wonder it was birch that became the symbol of our country.
In addition to the usual blond trees with long earrings, it turns out there are varieties of a completely different look. The most common types of birches in Russia are dangling and fluffy, although trees in our country are also found with bark of yellow, purple, cherry, gray, brown and black colors. In these unique trees, only experienced botanists will be able to recognize a representative of the birch genus. So, for example, in the Far Eastern taiga grows birch with shaggy bark instead of birch bark. There are also trees with a dark purple outer part of the trunk. This species is called iron birch due to solid wood, whose strength is second only to boccout (a tree growing in the tropics).
Betula pendula
As we have already said, the symbol of Russia is birch. Species and varieties of the most common trees in our country, we will consider in the article. And let's start with the birch hanging (warty). This tree can reach a height of 30 meters with a trunk diameter of 60-80 centimeters. It is characterized by an openwork crown, with shoots hanging down, a snow-white or grayish-white bark with various cracks, the shape of which depends on the type of birch bark. A coarse crust may form in the lower part of the trunk. Birches with a rhomboid-fissured shape grow rapidly, respectively, with a rough bark - slowly. The main feature of this species is the presence of small growths, the so-called warts on young branches. Karelian is considered the most valuable variety of birch.
Betula pubescens
Fluffy birch is a straight-trunk tree with branches spread upwards, smooth bark of white or grayish color and young shoots hanging down. Mud birch is especially appreciated.
Betula pubescens is found in almost all zones, with the exception of the extreme northern and southern areas, where shrub species of birches grow. Description of the area where the trees grow: the most common types of birches often grow in the same forest parks, despite the fact that their ecological properties are different; for high-lying birch, dry places on a hill are preferable, and for fluffy - highly moist; sometimes even found in marshy areas. These species of birch trees grow well with deciduous and coniferous trees.
Mini-trees
What types of birches are there, besides the aforementioned varieties, in the vastness of our country? In addition to tall trunk white trees, dwarf birches grow in the mountains of Russia. Some species are found in the Altai Mountains and the highlands of Central Asia. Botanists have about 12 species of stunted trees growing around the world. So, for example, in Altai you can admire the small-leaved birch, in the Pamir-Altai - Altai and Turkestan, and in the Tien Shan - Sapozhnikov and Tien Shan birch.
Dwarf trees in our country are found in the Far North, mainly in the treeless landscape zone of the subarctic zone of the northern hemisphere with characteristic moss-lichen vegetation and mountain tundra of the eastern part of Siberia. The most common undersized birches include dwarf, skinny, Middendorf and Komarov birch.
Some species are so small that they are inferior in height to boletus mushrooms. In certain areas you can find dwarf trees that look more like shrubs in appearance: Kuzmishchev's birch, Gmelin, stunted, kustornikovy, oval-leaved and Far Eastern. They grow mainly in forest-mud zones, on marshy areas in the forest.
Daurian birch
Dark-tree species of trees are widespread in the Far East, although some of them can be admired in Eastern Siberia. These include Daurian birch. A tree with a lace crown grows up to 25 m in height. The main difference from other species is the original bark: in young birch trees it is pinkish in color, in old birches it is dark gray, less often black-brown, with cracks along the fibers. Birch bark can periodically exfoliate and partially fall off, the remaining part, which hangs in shreds, creates an effect of curly. The dark green leaves of birch of the Daurian (black) oval shape acquire a yellow-brown hue by autumn. Flowering begins immediately after leafing. The growing season is shorter than in other species.
Birch groves
In the mountains of the Black Sea coast south of Tuapse and the Rion basin, there are small forests of Medvedev's birch. Due to the good rooting of the branches, this species often grows on the slopes, new daughter trees are formed from rooted shoots.
An unusual view of a grove formed by Radde birch with red-pink birch bark. The only representative of sharp trees in Russia is Maksimovich’s birch, which is found only on the southernmost island of Kunashir (Kuril ridge).
