Winter is here in the Green Mountains of Vermont, and with that comes a slowing down of foraging opportunities. While it is not impossible to go out and forage in the VT winter, it certainly is much more difficult to find anything fun to take home (especially in a little ski town like Stowe).
Perhaps the main thing I find myself looking for is Chaga. I have written about Chaga a bit already and you can read up on that information here and there. So instead of talking more about all the wonderfulness of Chaga, I instead want to focus on the tree we find it on. I am of course talking about the birch tree.
As I was out skiing along the Catamount XC Trail here in Stowe, I found myself hopelessly and haplessly looking up for Chaga with every new bend in the trail. Although I did not find any Chaga, and had to discipline myself to stop looking out of an abundance of caution for my own well being (it’s not easy to stay on the trail when you are looking up in the trees the whole time), I did find myself focusing in on the birch trees.
I started to really focus in on the different types of birch we are lucky enough to find here in the Green Mountains of Vermont. The beauty of the birch tree is really something special. I mean, all trees are of course beautiful in their own right, but there is something undeniably remarkable about the birch. Whether it’s their bright yellow foliage in the autumn, their odd catkin flowers in the summer, their vibrant, toothy leaves in the spring, or their most dramatic peeling bark in the winter- the birch tree is always a welcome sight to see in the forest.
Birch trees are a Northern delight, distributed primarily throughout the northern climates of the world only. They have double-toothed leaves, and their bark is highly flammable making for the best natural fire starter out there. The bark of some varieties has been used in canoe making for centuries by native northern cultures throughout the world.
Identifying Birch Trees In Vermont
The main thing I was realizing out there skiing along the Catamount trail was how many different species we have just here in Stowe, VT alone. I recognized at least 4 different species that day, which got me thinking about how many we actually have here. So I whipped out my phone and started taking photos of the different types of birch I was seeing.
I decided I would like to create a page dedicated to identifying birch trees in Vermont. This post is the start of that project, which will be ongoing as I discover more species and varieties of birch though time. I will focus in on how to clearly differentiate the main species, as well as perhaps identifying some local varieties. This page will be kept here, and updated as more information is gained. Thanks for reading, and please feel free to send in any questions or photos of birch trees, and I will gladly help you identify.
