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Dwarf birch

Dwarf birch

Betula nana

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How common: Very common

Dwarf birch is a very low birch that forms mats or small shrubs in cold, open places. It is common on bogs, fens and windswept heaths, and is adapted to short summers and strong winds. You can spot it by its tiny round, blunt‑toothed leaves and reddish‑brown, peeling bark.

Did you know?

  • It is the northernmost birch species.
  • Its buds and young leaves contain fragrant oils, and the dry twigs catch fire easily.

About the species

Identification

A 20–80 cm, very low shrub. Stems may creep or stand upright; branches are stiff and dark, bark reddish‑brown and peeling. New shoots are softly hairy. Leaves are tiny (0.5–1.5 cm), nearly round, thick and smooth, with many small blunt teeth; often turn red in autumn. Flowers open after the leaves and are wind‑pollinated: small, scentless clusters (short dangling male, short upright female). Later it carries tiny flat seeds with narrow wings. Easy to tell from taller birches with bigger, more pointed leaves; mountain birch also has larger leaves. Flowers in Finland in May–June.

Plant group

Dwarf shrubs

Habitat

mire

Flowering

May–Jun

About the habitat

Grows on bogs and peatlands, wet and open heaths, and arctic tundra; in the far north also in sparse forests. Thrives on very poor, cold, exposed sites from lowlands to mountains. Widespread across Finland, rarer in the south and along the southwest and south coasts; absent from Åland.

Sources

Photo: Foledman, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Betukananabereza.jpg

Text: Pinkka: Kumpulan kasvitieteellisen puutarhan maantieteellinen osasto - Suomi, CC BY 4.0 https://laji.fi/taxon/MX.38004

Text: Pinkka: Suomen puuvartiset - Koppisiemeniset. Lähteet: Väre, H., Saarinen, J., Kurtto, A. & Hämet-Ahti, L. (toim.) 2021: Suomen puu- ja pensaskasvio. 3. täysin uudistettu p. – Publications of the Finnish Dendrological Society 10: 1–552 s., CC BY 4.0 https://laji.fi/taxon/MX.38004

Text: Pinkka: BIO-503 Suomen kasvisto ja kasvillisuus - Tunturit: tunturikoivikot, CC BY 4.0 https://laji.fi/taxon/MX.38004

Text: Pinkka: Laaja maatalouslajintuntemus 4 op - Koppisiemeniset, CC BY 4.0 https://laji.fi/taxon/MX.38004

Text: Wikipedia (Finnish), CC BY-SA 4.0 https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaivaiskoivu

See also