June Plant of the Month

Shiloh Splash River Birch

There are few springtime landscape pictures to rival a snowy-trunked birch sending out its first pale green leaves.  Birches are at their best seen against a dark evergreen background, not only in the summer, when their own leaves are bright green, or in fall, when the leaves turn golden yellow, but in winter when the white peeling trunks and branches stand out boldly against the evergreen foliage.

An exceptionally picturesque new birch variety is ‘Shiloh Splash’ River Birch which has variegated foliage throughout the spring and summer, turning a bright yellow in the fall. ‘Shiloh Splash’ is a medium sized tree, growing to 30 feet at maturity and 15 feet wide and is often seen in the landscape with a low canopy, typical a clearance of 3 feet from the ground.

‘Shiloh Splash’ is conspicuous in the landscape planted near evergreens and plum-colored leaved trees such as ‘Crimson King’ and ‘Royal Red’ Norway maples, as well as ‘Newport’ ornamental plum. Kept pruned, ‘Shiloh Splash’ can be the companion to red and purple leaved barberry, spirea, and weigela in a shrub garden. This new birch variety does best in full sun to partial shade and prefers moisture retentive soils. As with all River Birch varieties, ‘Shiloh Splash’ will withstand heat but not dry soils.