Birch, Sweet Birch: New England’s Forest Birches

The story of the birch trees of New England, particularly those of the forest (black, white, and yellow birch). Bob Leverett, old growth forest expert, teaches us about old birch trees most people wouldn’t recognize. Richard Higgins, a Thoreau researcher and author, offers commentary from Thoreau’s point of view. Some of the largest and oldest black (sweet) birches in the northeast US are found in western Massachusetts, on the Mt Tom and Holyoke ranges; gnarly yellow birches perch on boulders in Monroe State Forest. Companion story at See our other videos on the New England Forests youtube channel.