Himalayan Birch

A True Miracle of Nature

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The Himalayan birch, popularly known as bhojpatra in Indian sub-continent, is one of most important tree species across the high reaches of the Himalayas due its highly significant properties and plethora of uses. The multiple benefits of the tree have indeed made it a true miracle of nature. Continue reading to learn more...

Belonging to the family Betulaceae, Himalayan birch’s botanical name is Betula utilis D. Don; the specific epithet, utilis, refers to the many uses of the different parts of the tree. D. Don refers to the botanist David Don, who discovered and named the tree in his book Prodromus Florae Nepalensis (1825), from the specimens collected by Nattaneil Wallish in Nepal in 1820.

In India, B. utilis is generally called bhojpatra though it has different names in other languages. For instance, it is known as bhurja or bhurjapatraka in Sanskrit; bhuj in Garhwali, Kumaoni, and Gujarati; bhurjamaram in Tamil; bhurjapatri or bhurjapatvama in Telugu and so on. It is native to Afghanistan, China, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. In India, the species is found in Arunachal Pradesh, West Bengal Darjeeling), Himachal Pradesh, Jammu Kashmir, Sikkim, and Uttarakhand.

In Uttarakhand, B. utilis grows along moraines around Bhojbhasa, close to the snout of the Gangotri glacier.