Description
Birch leaf mountain mahogany is most commonly found growing in chaparral, oak woodland, and pine or mixed evergreen forest in areas with good drainage. This drought tolerant shrub is in the rose family, and its botanical name, Cercocarpus betuloides, helps with identification. Cerco is derived from the Greek word, kerkos, meaning “tail.” Carpus means “fruit.” The description of a tailed fruit refers to the distinctive curly, feather-like achene fruit that facilitates wind dispersal. Betula is the genus for birch trees, and betuloides refers to the birch-like leaves. The common name, mountain mahogany is used because of the extremely hard and reddish heartwood that was crafted into tools by Native Americans, and is still used by wood crafters today. Semi-evergreen, nitrogen fixing, drought tolerant, adaptable to many soil types, but susceptible to heavy deer browse. Generally grows to around 15′ tall. The inconspicuous white flowers are wind pollinated.
Birch leaf mountain mahogany (Cercocarpus betuloides) seed packets contain approximately 25 seeds per packet.
Seed Germination Instructions
Pretreatment may not be necessary for this species . Sow outside in fall to early spring. Germination will be improved with 30-60 days cold-moist stratification. If you live in an area with cold enough winters you can simply sow the seeds outside in fall to early spring and let nature do the work, or if you live in an area with mild winters, you can use artificial methods for stratification. For more information about cold-stratification and seed germination, read more on our website here.