How to collect seeds from Birch trees
I have a birch tree in my yard And I would like to gather seeds. It’s late September now, the tree has green catkins on it. Do I pick these now? Can you send me a site that I can read that will help me in this process.
Michigan
1 Response
Hello,
Thank you for contacting "Ask an Expert."
Growing a paper birch from seed is a great idea. The pieces you collected appear to be strobiles, or fertilized flowers. When they begin to dry you can harvest the seeds. Here is a link to a picture:
https://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?enlarge=0000+0000+0107+0493
Here is a link to instructions on how to treat the seeds once you collect them:
https://depts.washington.edu/propplnt/Plants/Paperbirch.htm
If you have any follow up questions, please don't hesitate to reach out!
Thank you,
Julie
