Where Are Birch Trees Found in the World?

Birch trees have a large geographic distribution throughout Europe and Asia Minor. Types such as the silver birch and the downy birch have very large ranges--the downy birch even grows in Iceland as a native species. The European white birch grows as far south as Italy and as far north as the Arctic Circle.

Many types of birches grow throughout eastern sections of Asia. Species that include the Chinese paper birch, Japanese cherry birch, Erman birch, Asian white birch, dwarf birch and Schmidt birch grow in nations such as China, Korea, Japan and Manchuria.

Only the river birch has a range that extends into the Deep South in the United States. All of the rest of the North American birches grow in the northern portion of the continent or in areas that feature mountains where the climate is cool or cold. For example, the water birch grows extensively throughout the Rocky Mountain States.