The leaves on my birch tree are still not turning color at this point of time. As the length of the days change the tree will be effected by it. I am looking forward to the yellow leaves that it develops but not to the loosing of the leaves onto the ground.
As a kid, I didn't see birch trees in southern Iowa. It is not a natural tree for the area. When my family would take a yearly summer trip to the Colorado area I would see this kind of tree. I always thought they were so special. The trinket shops out in the West of course always had small replicas of a canoe made out of Birch bark. It would be two pieces of bark cut into a canoe shape and laced together with a natural reed-like plant. I remember owning one of those canoes as a kid. When I see the bark I do have memories of Native American's and early settlers using the tree to make their canoes.
Today I also have the great memories of the birch in Minnesota and along the North Shore of Lake Superior. This tree is a sprout that I brought home 35 years ago and is probably the only birch tree in the area for miles. The river birch and clump birch are everywhere now because of commercial sales but the strong true birch is still rare in Iowa.