River Birch (Betula nigra)

Family: Betulaceae | Edibility: Edible (3/5)

Bloom Color: Brown. Main Bloom Time: Early spring, Early winter, Late spring, Late winter, Mid spring, Mid winter. Form: Oval, Pyramidal, Upright or erect.

Edible Parts & Harvest Seasons

Edible Parts: Sap/Syrup

Harvest Seasons: Early Summer, Spring, Winter

Flavor & Culinary Uses

sweet flavour. — Sap - raw or cooked.; Harvested in early spring, before the leaves unfurl.; The trunk is tapped by drilling a hole about 6mm wide and about 4cm deep.; The sap flows best on warm sunny days following a hard frost.

Habitat & North American Range

Banks of streams, by swamps etc, in deep rich soil that is often inundated for weeks at a time. (Zone 3, Zone 4, Zone 5, Zone 6, Zone 7, Zone 8, Zone 9)