This weekend, I visited the Salmon Hole to find a tree for this phenology post. After looking around at the large variety of trees to choose from, I settled on a tall, thin paper birch. I identified the paper birch firstly by its white, chalky bark. The peeling, papery strips of bark peeled back in spots where I could see the pinky-grey inner bark. I was able to distinguish this paper birch from its lookalikes because I knew that paper birches thrive in wetter areas, making the Salmon Hole the perfect environment for them. I could also identify the paper birch by its buds, as it only had sharp, pointed, lateral buds.
