The Dawes Arboretum

Common name: Northern Tribute® red birch, Northern Tribute® river birch

Family: Betulaceae (birch family)

Distribution: Species native to e.-c. and e. United States

Hardiness: USDA Zone 3

Life form: Deciduous tree

Comments: This native deciduous tree speceis was selected for its upright, oval form which is different from the rounded habit of typical species. It grows 30-40' tall with a spread of 25-30'. It also features ivory bark exfoliating to copper-bronze and has superior adaptability to stresses of the Upper Midwest and Northern Plains. It has shown no signs of winter injury or iron chlorosis in alkaline soils and has performed well in compacted, dry soils, which is extremely atypical of the species and other selected cultivars. Recommended as a landscape specimen tree in more open areas, not limited to moist soils. A seedling selection from western North Dakota from the largest tree of this species observed in the upper Northern Plains.