Landscaping &Wildlife: Very attractive ornamental tree. It is a desirable specimen for estates, golf courses, parks, and public grounds. Many species of birds eat the seeds including wild turkey and grouse. The leaves are browsed by white-tailed deer.
Conservation: River birch is used for strip mine reclamation and erosion control (Grelen 1990). It is used in forested riparian buffers to help reduce stream bank erosion, protect water quality, and enhance aquatic environments.
General: Birch family (Betulaceae). River birch is a deciduous medium to large-sized native tree. The leaves are alternate, double serrated, wedge-shaped, and sharp pointed. The flowers are unisexual, borne in separate male and female catkins on the same tree. The bark is light brown to buff, paperlike; exfoliating on young trees, turning to scaly bark on older trees.
Distribution: River birch is distributed throughout North America. It extends from southern New England, west to Kansas and Minnesota, and south to Texas and Florida. 
Adaptation: River birch can survive on drier soils, although it is best adapted to moist soils and is usually found along stream banks and in swampy bottomlands that are periodically flooded. Maximum development is reached in fertile areas with a pH of 6.5 to 4.0. It is intolerant of shade and requires full sunlight.
Management: Fertilize young trees in late winter before new growth begins to ensure faster growth. Don’t prune this birch and other birches until summer because they are “bleeders” and should not be cut when the sap is flowing.
River birch is quite disease resistant but has severe problems in early spring with aphids and is favored by gypsy moth larvae.
Photo Credit: Robert MohlenbrockMidwestern Wetland FloraUSDA, NRCS, Wetland Sciences Institute@ PLANTS