Alder: where it grows, what it looks like, the beneficial properties of the plant. Alder - a valuable and healing plant Alder in autumn
Many people ask questions about what alder looks like, whether it is a shrub or a tree. Depending on living conditions, the plant can change its shape and grow in the form of a deciduous bush with fruit cones or a large spreading tree. The homeland of the species is Europe. This used to be a tree endowed with magical properties,considered sacred, a symbol of fertility and rebirth, and today it is widely used in industry and medicine.
Botanists classify this tree with catkins as a member of the birch family. Most often it can be found in areas with high humidity: near rivers, swamps, lakes. If we talk about Russia, this tree species is most common in the Urals region, Western Siberia, in the steppe and forest-steppe zone. Spruce, birch, aspen, and oak trees can grow next to them. Graceful earrings appear on the tree in the spring, during flowering, and by autumn the fruits ripen in the form of small cones.
In total there are about 40 species of alder. We most often find three varieties:
- Gray. The variety was named so because of the gray color of the bark and the same shade of leaves growing on it. Its trunk is uneven and has many bends. The species grows up to 20 m in height. During the alder flowering period, brown catkins appear on it. This variety loves light, so it often grows in sunny places. These trees are not afraid of cold and winds; they can take root in rather poor soils.
- Black alder is different dark color bark with many cracks. The leaves are oval or round in shape and have a notch. The trunk is branched. This variety reaches a height of up to 35 m. Flowering occurs with the formation of catkins in early spring. When ripe, the fruits resemble small cones of coniferous trees. It likes to grow near rivers; you will not find it in wetlands. Black alder has beautiful, pink-tinged wood, which is why it is often used in production.
- Red alder has been cultivated since 1884. Grows up to 20 m in height. The tree has light gray bark and dark red shoots. The leaves are large, pointed, with a tucked serrated edge. The cones are ovoid, medium-sized, collected in 6-8 pieces.
Gallery: alder tree (25 photos)
Application in construction
The wood of this tree is used not only independently, but also as a component in the production of particle boards, plywood, and veneer. This is justified by its antiseptic qualities due to its astringent properties. Each type of alder has its own characteristics that determine its area of application.
Black alder is considered the most sensitive to temperature changes, so they try not to use it in the decoration of saunas and baths. What needs to be taken into account when working with alder is that this wood is quite soft and still requires treatment against pests and moisture. Its main advantage is its long service life and the fact that the fibers have a beautiful texture. This species is used to make crafts, toys, paper, and is used as fuel.
Products made from gray alder are better suited for use in wet conditions, this expands the scope of its application. This wood is also ideal for making eco-friendly toys, shoes and some turning tools.
Houses, saunas, baths
The advantages of this type of wood include the ability to stain beautiful shades and even achieve an imitation of more valuable wood species. Alder board has healing properties, therefore well suited for interior decoration of houses, saunas and baths. The advantages of building materials made from alder wood are:
- resistance to deformation at high temperatures;
- lack of release of resinous and other harmful compounds;
- ability to absorb moisture well;
- excellent sound and heat insulation properties;
- the fact that condensation does not accumulate on the surface of this wood;
- low thermal conductivity - this reduces the risk of burns to a minimum.
When constructing structures, it is important to take into account one nuance - alder boards should not come into contact with the ground.
Doors, laminate, furniture
This solid wood makes excellent interior doors. Thanks to various treatments, they can be used in any interior, while the price remains quite affordable. Alder doors are completely safe, and also have antibacterial and anti-allergenic properties; they can even be used in children's rooms. They serve for quite a long time.
Alder laminate not only meets all technical requirements, but also has an attractive appearance. It can be considered as a replacement for elite parquet. Such floors do not get too dirty, are easy to clean, and do not require much time for maintenance or any special means for this.
Not only solid wood is used to make furniture; alder is also used in plywood, chipboard and furniture panels. In operation, these types of materials provide the best wear resistance, they do not chip, and are not subject to deformation. Alder furniture is lightweight, but at the same time quite durable.
It is important to know that when working with wood, it is better not to use nails; when driven in, they can split the material. In this case, screws will be an excellent replacement.
Alder leaves, bark, and alder seeds, which are recommended to be collected in late autumn, have a healing effect. When harvesting, the cones are cut with garden shears and then dried indoors at room temperature. If everything is done correctly, the fruits will have a brown or brown color, a light aroma and an astringent taste. The leaves are harvested at the beginning of summer, and the bark at the beginning of winter.
Thanks to the availability essential oils, organic acids, tannins, alkaloids and other components, preparations based on alder fruits and leaves have a blood purifying, bactericidal, hemostatic, astringent effect. Decoctions of the seeds and leaves of this plant provide a diaphoretic and antimicrobial effect and reduce inflammation.
An infusion of alder fruits is used to treat disorders of the gastrointestinal tract; the bark is used for enterocolitis and digestive disorders. Decoctions based on the plant cleanse the skin, heal wounds, eliminate nosebleeds, reduce allergies, and help with rheumatism.
Every year, many plants rush to announce the arrival of spring. Alder can also give summer residents a good hint. The photo of this tree allows everyone to understand how beautiful it can look at this time of year. Alder is decorated with smooth bark, and its rounded leaves retain their green color until the first frost.
Alder tree: description
This tree has very lush crown, however, it is still somewhat sparse due to the fact that the branches are unevenly distributed. When the snow has not yet melted everywhere, the alder is already signaling the coming of spring, which is manifested in its active flowering. Therefore, it is enough to know when alder blooms to understand that winter is beginning to lose its strength.
Moreover, winds help it get ahead of many other plants when they enter the flowering phase, thanks to which its pollination occurs.
When the alder begins to bloom, it is decorated with beautiful earrings, which are divided into women's and men's. If during formation they look familiar green, then at the ripening stage they become red-brown.
Women's earrings quite small and reach a length of about 1 cm, hang on the branches in groups of up to 8 pieces, a sign of their ripeness is the acquisition of a woody shell. Men's earrings have their own differences in this regard: they grow on branches of 4-5 pieces, they differ quite large sizes, having a length of 5-9 cm. The appearance of leaves occurs only after the end of alder flowering.
The fruits here are small green cones. Moreover, the latter also differ from each other: some grow wingless, others are filmy or leathery. Throughout the winter, the cones are closed, but with the onset of March they open, causing the seeds to fall into the soil. They reach the ripening stage only at the end of autumn. Alder leaves are a very useful fertilizer because they contain a lot of nitrogen.
Alder as part of a natural complex
On average these trees grow for about 100 years. Although there are also centenarians who can delight with their appearance for 150 years. Their favorite places to grow are areas with moist soil. Therefore, alder can often be found on the banks of various bodies of water.
When favorable factors are combined, thickets - alder forests - can form. In the northern regions, alder grows as a coniferous tree. In the south it has extremely small representation, which is why it is part of mixed forests along with oak and beech. This tree also feels great with other forest representatives - birch, spruce, oak, linden and aspen.
Alder can be used not only for decorative purposes, but also interesting as a honey plant. During its development, it forms buds and leaves rich in resinous substances, which are used by bees as raw materials for the production of propolis.
You can also find a use for dry alder leaves, because they can be used as livestock feed.
Black Alder: Deciduous Tree
Although this tree includes many species, among them you can most often find black alder, which is so called because of the corresponding color of its bark. This tree is also mentioned in Greek mythology, where it often appears at fire festivals, symbolizing the onset of spring. Alder is a light-loving plant, it is also very responsive to moisture. If it is planted in damp places, alder swamps may subsequently form there. However, standing water is detrimental to it.
Over the course of a year, black alder quickly gains height. Mature plants can grow up to 20 m. It pleases with its flowers earlier than other trees, since they appear already in April. The situation is somewhat different with fruits, which reach the stage of maturity only at the end of next spring.
Unlike other species, black alder requires special care . This variety is protected in many countries - Moldova, Kazakhstan and certain regions of Russia. Black alder is often used to create landscape design parks and squares. It can also be used for planting along reservoirs, with the goal of strengthening the banks. It copes with this task perfectly, since it has a widely branched root system.
Beauty with brown earrings
Gray alder is one of the fairly common species of the birch family. It stands out for its large size, since it can grow up to 16 m. For its planting, they choose the banks of reservoirs and ravines that are in danger of destruction. To obtain planting material, you can use young shoots, cuttings or seeds.
The trunk of this tree has a characteristic grey colour , the leaves also look the same; brown catkins act as a decorative part. Therefore, when you see a tree that has these signs, know that this is an alder. Many people value this plant because of its ability to withstand very coldy and grow well on the poor nutrients soils and wetlands.
Scope of application
Alder is valued not only for its attractive appearance, as it has many other useful properties.
In decorative arts
Alder grown from young seedlings grows quite quickly, this often leads to the appearance of wild thickets. At this stage life cycle it has a uniform wood structure, which is easy to process. Because of this, it is often used in industry.
Alder is one of the popular materials for creating artistic carvings. It is used in the manufacture of carved dishes, decorative panels and sculptures. As a result of processing wood using the dry distillation method, it is possible to obtain coals that are highly valued by artists. Specimens whose trunks are decorated with beads acquire particular decorative significance.
In folk medicine
This tree is also valued as a remedy for many diseases. Alder cones, leaves and bark have beneficial properties, rich in tannins. Effective medicines are decoctions and tinctures based on cones and alder bark, since they have an astringent, anti-inflammatory, disinfectant, antibacterial and hemostatic effect.
- if there is a purulent wound, then it is enough to apply a leaf of black alder tree to it, and very soon it will heal;
- vodka infusion of earrings can help people who suffer from hemorrhoids and constipation;
- To combat diathesis and eczema, a decoction of flowers is used, which must be prepared at the very beginning of flowering.
You can restore the natural intestinal microflora after a course of antibiotics using a decoction of alder cones. This remedy also helps cope with diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. It is often used for such conditions, How:
- inflammation of the nasopharynx and throat;
- cold;
- angina;
- pharyngitis.
In order to stop bleeding from the nose, it is useful to keep tampons made from fresh alder leaves in it. Traditional healers recommend taking a decoction to combat gout, arthritis and joint pain.
An effective remedy is dry baths, which are prepared from freshly picked leaves.
- they should be heated in the sun or in a stove, and then they are laid on the bed and the patient is allowed to lie on them. You can also cover the affected areas of the body with heated alder leaves, and wrap a warm blanket on top. In this case, the effect will be maximum if such a procedure lasts at least an hour;
- This remedy works even better if the leaves are heated in a deep tub, in which the patient must then be placed up to his neck. According to the same scheme, they fight ailments using birch leaves.
When visiting a bathhouse, it is very useful to use alder brooms, which have a cleansing, disinfecting, tonic effect, and can also fill the body with energy.
In production
The ease of processing alder wood has led to its often used in industry. Various operations can be carried out on it, including polishing, varnishing and staining. This tree also retains its integrity when screws are screwed into it. Changes can be observed when nails are driven in, which manifests itself as peeling of the wood.
Drying alder does not affect its properties in any way: it takes a minimum of time, and during this operation no defects such as warping or cracks occur. This feature has made alder one of the most preferred materials for making musical instruments and accessories for them.
Collection and preparation of cones
The favorable moment for harvesting cones comes at the end of autumn. Moreover, you can continue collecting them until March. The process of collecting cones itself has its own characteristics: first you need to carefully trim the ends of the branches with cones with pruning shears, and then fruits are plucked from them. Cones that lie on the ground do not have the necessary properties, so they cannot be used. After harvesting, the cones are laid out in an even layer under a canopy or in the attic, where air access must be provided, where the drying procedure is carried out. If it’s warm enough outside, you can dry the fruits on outdoors, not forgetting to stir them from time to time. With proper drying, the buds retain their beneficial features for three years.
Conclusion
Few of us are familiar with such a tree as alder, and in vain. After all, it is one of the first to signal the onset of spring, starting early flowering even at the moment when all the snow has not yet melted. At this stage of its development, the tree makes beautiful earrings, which give it even more decorative properties. However, alder looks most attractive when it has cones.
Although in this case you will have to be patient, since they are formed only next spring. But alder is of interest not only because of its decorative properties, because it is often used to make effective drugs for the treatment of diseases. Wood is used in industry, because it easily tolerates different kinds processing without any serious defects.
The alder tree is distinguished by its lush crown and healing qualities for human body. The leaves and inflorescences of this species are used in folk medicine. They contain a large number of useful microelements that help cope with various pathological processes.
Description of the breed
What does an alder tree look like? This breed is tall plant up to 20 m in length. The crown diameter of an adult plant reaches up to 20 m. Average duration life span is from 50 to 100 years.
How does alder bloom? In early spring, it forms small catkins, the size of which reaches up to 5 cm. The female inflorescences have an oval shape and a dense base. Men's earrings are long elements with a porous structure.
The alder leaf contains a large amount of nitrogen. It enters the mature cover after the leaf blades fall in the autumn. This breed prefers moist soil types. That is why it grows near rivers and large bodies of water.
The bark and inflorescences have a large number of resin passages that attract bees. This product allows them to produce excellent propolis. It is widely used in medicine.
Varieties of alder
In nature, there are several varieties of alder. Each species has some differences in the composition of the bark and the color of the leaves. These include:
Black alder
It reaches up to 15 m in height. The bark of an adult plant has a characteristic dark shade. The tree thrives in moist soil areas. It grows quickly and produces a large amount of shoots under the main root.
The leaves are diamond-shaped and have a carved edge. Outwardly, they have a slight resemblance to hazel. As a rule, the culture does not tolerate proximity to other tree species.
This species is most often used to landscape urban and park areas. Mature trees form a dense green crown, which helps to hide from the bright sun.
Gray alder
This breed prefers swampy areas. That is why it is widespread along river banks and wide lakes. An adult plant reaches up to 17 m in height. It is distinguished by its frost resistance.
The tree is propagated using short cuttings, seeds or young shoots. The leaves and trunk have a pale gray tint. In the first year of life, it is recommended to carry out frequent watering and spraying.
It is best to plant planting material in sunny areas. This will allow the tree to quickly form a powerful root system.
You should not plant young trees next to oak, maple and ash. This culture does not tolerate such proximity. As the plant grows, a slow increase in height and premature loss of leaves are noted.
Where is alder used?
This breed has smooth trunk and thin bark. The array is amenable to mechanical processing and factory deformation. The wood after drying is quite strong and durable. It does not splinter from self-tapping screws, but is vulnerable to thin metal nails.
Before use, the wood needs to be thoroughly cleaned of knots and dried. If you neglect this requirement, then the likelihood of voids appearing inside the array increases. In the future, this will affect the performance of the wooden product.
The material is used in the production of bridges, rafts and wooden ships. Solid alder is used for finishing work. The material requires additional treatment with antifungal compounds.
Wood is used to make boxes for storing various small items and molds for casting. Branches and firewood are used as fuel material. Wood has high heat transfer.
The wood has a beautiful texture and durability. More often, solid wood is used for the manufacture of furniture paraphernalia. The products are durable and wear-resistant. The surface needs additional varnish protection. This helps emphasize the depth of textured lines and the color of the furniture.
The shavings are used for the production of chipboard and MDF panels. The products are resistant to moisture. The material contains a large amount of resin. It repels harmful insects and prevents rotting processes.
Photo of alder
A real harbinger of the onset of spring, which at first glance seems like the most ordinary tree, is alder. Photos of the tree convey all the beauty of such a beauty. Its slender trunk is covered with smooth bark; its rounded leaves do not change color over the season and remain green until the onset of frost.
Alder tree: description
A photo of a representative of the forest shows the richness of its crown, although the latter seems sparse due to the uneven, loose arrangement of the branches. The flowering process begins in early spring, when there is still snow everywhere; The wind plays the role of pollinator.
What does alder look like? The tree blooms with earrings, divided into female and male, which in the process of ripening (September-October) acquire a red-brown color. Female ones are about 1 cm long, located in groups of up to 8 pieces and during the ripening period they become woody like cones.
Alder as part of a natural complex
100 years is the average age, and 150 years is the maximum age of such a natural specimen as an alder tree. Where does such an inconspicuous, but very useful tree? Alder prefers wet soils(these are the banks of streams, rivers and various reservoirs) and often forms thickets, so-called alder forests: in pure form or mixed. In the north it is believed that alder is conifer tree, V southern regions it forms together with oak and beech mixed forests. The plant coexists well with birch, spruce, oak, linden and aspen.
Alder is a valuable honey plant. Resinous substances are released from its buds and leaves, which serve bees to produce propolis.
Dry leaves of the plant are excellent for feeding to livestock.
Black alder - deciduous tree
The most widespread among the known varieties is black alder, which received its name from the black bark of an adult tree. In Greek mythology, black alder, also characterized by its sticky, shiny leaves, is associated with the festival of fire and the arrival of spring. Alder (a photo of the tree is given in the article) loves light and moisture; growing in moist places, it can create alder swamps. At the same time, it does not tolerate standing water at all.
The growth of black alder, which is considered a loner because it does not accept trees of other species, is quite rapid. The plant can reach 20 meters. Flowering begins in April, and the fruits (cones with a narrow wing) ripen only at the end of next spring.
Black (sticky) alder, more capricious compared to other varieties, is included in the Red Book of Moldova, Kazakhstan and some regions of Russia. This tree is used to landscape parks and squares; thanks to its widely branched root system, it is planted along reservoirs, thus strengthening the banks.
Beauty with brown earrings
Alder, a tree whose description allows us to highlight its main characteristics, is an equally popular species of the birch family. Gray alder can reach a height of up to 16 meters. Therefore, it is planted to secure ravines and coastal areas. Propagated by root suckers, cuttings and seeds.
What does alder look like? The tree has a gray, slightly curved trunk, gray leaves, and brown catkins. These are the main characteristics by which alder can be distinguished from other plants. Frost resistance and the ability to grow on depleted soils and wetlands are the advantages that characterize the alder tree.
Description, photo of the green beauty, an integral part natural complex, will allow you to get to know her better.
Alder in decorative arts
Growth is quite active, especially at a young age; during this period, wild thickets most often form. Thanks to such characteristics as the uniformity of the wood structure, its softness, viscosity and pliability, alder is a tree that has found wide application in industry. Its wood has long been used as an optimal material for artistic carving and is the basis for creating carved dishes, decorative panels and sculptures. Dry distillation from alder produces coals, which artists use in their work, creating future masterpieces, and wood vinegar. The sagging on the trunks has decorative value.
Industrial Application
Alder is easy to process, well planed, sawn, and glued. Excellent resistance to polishing, varnishing, staining; When screwing in screws, it does not split; when driving nails, it can peel off. When dried, wood, which is also used in the production of gunpowder, does not change its properties: it dries quickly, does not warp or crack. Thanks to these qualities, alder is used in the manufacture of musical instruments and parts for them.
Alder wood is resistant to water and does not rot, therefore it is used as a material in the production of bridges, rafts, underwater structures and supports. Of the metals, it is critical of iron and in places where iron nails are driven in it will cause a rusting reaction and, as a result, the appearance of gray circles at the points of contact. Does not like contact with cement mortar, which causes an alkaline reaction inside the wood tissue and its rotting.
Alder is a tree that is widely used in the manufacture of plywood and particle boards. Its shavings are added as a binding antiseptic in the production of slabs from beech, spruce, and pine shavings.
Alder as a building material
Alder wood is used in the construction of wooden houses, carved entrance gates, well sheathing, production and restoration of furniture and decorative interior parts. Smooth trunks are used as fence posts.
This is an excellent material for the manufacture of packaging boxes, pallets, coils, and various casting molds. Alder intended for outdoor construction requires mandatory treatment with an antiseptic. Otherwise, the tree will begin to rot, especially in close contact with open ground.
IN industrial production Alder wood is used to make paper, and the waste is used as fuel. Alder firewood is considered high-quality heating fuel. They used to be used to burn off excess soot from pipes. Such firewood burns well and is characterized by high heat transfer and the absence of waste. It’s not for nothing that they are called “royal”, because they are old times heated the royal chambers.
Black alder bark is a first-class material for producing dyes for wool and leather, producing red, black and yellow colors. The brown dye comes from the buds.
Use of alder in folk medicine
The beneficial properties of alder are widely used in medicine: traditional and folk, mostly using cones, leaves and bark of the tree, which contains tannins. Decoctions and infusions of cones and bark are taken as an astringent, anti-inflammatory, disinfectant, antibacterial and hemostatic agent. A purulent wound will heal quickly if a black alder tree leaf is applied to it.
For constipation and hemorrhoids, use vodka infusion of earrings; for diathesis and eczema, they are treated with a decoction of flowers collected at the beginning of the flowering period. A decoction of alder cones is excellent for normalizing the natural intestinal microflora after taking antibiotics and is used in the treatment of diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. This remedy also helps with inflammatory processes nasopharynx and throat, colds, sore throats and pharyngitis.
In folk medicine, for nosebleeds, it is recommended to put it in the form of tampons. fresh leaves alders A decoction of them helps well with gout, arthritis, and joint pain. To prepare dry baths, fresh, just collected alder leaves are heated in the sun or in an oven and spread in a thick layer on the bed where the patient is placed. They cover the entire body and wrap it with a warm blanket on top. The duration of such a session is about an hour. The best effect will be if the leaves are placed in a deep tub, and when they warm up, you need to plant the patient there up to the neck. Treatment with birch leaves is carried out in the same way.
Alder brooms, which clean, disinfect, tone the skin and give strength and vitality, are very popular during bath procedures.
Alder in veterinary medicine
In a number of countries, fresh alder leaves are used to control fleas in domestic animals. They are scattered on the floor. A concentrated decoction of the leaves was recently used in the fight against bedbugs - for treating walls and washing beds. The cones were given to pets for bloody diarrhea.
Due to the vitamin C, carotene and protein content, black alder leaves are widely used in traditional medicine. A dry extract is produced from the cones - hops, which is used for dysentery; from wood - activated carbon tablets.
In cooking, sawdust and firewood are used to smoke meat and fish.
The collection of cones begins in late autumn and continues until March. To do this, the ends of the branches on which the cones grow are carefully trimmed with pruning shears, after which the latter are torn off. Fallen fruits are unsuitable for use. The collected raw materials, spread out in an even layer, are dried under a canopy or in attics in a ventilated area. IN warm weather The cones are dried in the open air, stirring occasionally. The shelf life of fruits is 3 years.
Alder is one of the most common in the zones temperate climate. It is used in construction and folk medicine. But this can often be confused with birch, which also has catkins. Therefore, it is important to understand what kind of alder tree it is and why it is given such preference.
Botanical description
Alder is a dicotyledonous plant, close relative birch trees This genus includes both trees and trees, so scientists count a large number of species and subspecies. The type species is considered to be black alder (Alnus glutinosa).
Wilha, as the plant is also called, is deciduous and can adapt to different habitats. Alder leaves are colored in many shades of green, are stalked and jagged at the edges, and their shape depends on the life form. 
An interesting feature is the epidermal cells, a small pubescence that is found on branches, leaves and buds. This feature helps in life, but does not serve as protection against.
The plant is often described as a "tree with catkins." This is due to the fact that a spike-shaped inflorescence grows at the ends of the shoots. It is in them that pollen is formed. The ovules are located in small spikelets. The tree has a fruit - a small nut.
Habitat
The tree is common in areas that fall in the temperate climate zone. The habitat also depends on the life form. Therefore, it can be found even in the mountains of South America.
Most often, alder grows in swampy forests. Its habitat also extends to the tundra, which is located in the subarctic climate zone. 
Popular types
Each of us may have different ideas of what alder looks like. After all, its appearance depends on the place of growth. There are up to 40 species in the genus. The main difference between trees is growth and leaves, so let's take a closer look with photos of the most popular representatives of the Alder genus.
Italian
IN wildlife grows in southern Italy and Albania. The tree is unpretentious, but its habitat is usually near water. “Italian” reaches 15-20 meters in height (less often 25-28 m), the trunk is no more than 1 m in diameter.
This species is often confused with heart-leaved alder. But they differ, firstly, in the name (Alnus cordata - Italian (heart-shaped), Alnus subcordata - heart-leaved); secondly, habitat. 
The leaves on Italian alder are dense, smooth and can last until December, are oval in shape and up to 12 cm long, very similar to the leaves of and.
This one reaches 3 m in height. Its habitat is an island in the Japanese archipelago - Kyushu. Wind-resistant, leaves are serrated, oblong up to 12 cm in length. The branches are thin and flexible, sometimes with a gray coating.
Earrings are often paired up to 7 cm. Blooms from March. does well in humid climates. The wood is tougher than other types. 
Black is the type species of the genus. Also known as European due to its habitat. Young leaves are sticky, which is why the name “sticky” is also found. The tree can have two trunks and reaches a height of 35 m.
The crown is not dense, but at the same time voluminous (12 m in diameter). The trunk is up to 1 m in diameter and has black bark. Flowering usually occurs in April. A light-loving tree that tolerates moisture well due to the absence of organs responsible for moisture consumption.
If black alder grows in lowland marshes, then alder swamps may form. 
This type of tree grows in the wild in China. But now it can be found in many parks in England. This tree It is distinguished by its height (up to 40 m) and drooping branches. The leaves are long and narrow, the catkins are single and located in the axils of the leaves.
Each of the species can be affected by fungi, and the lichen is no exception. Marsupial fungi infect female catkins and can cause them to grow. Some species of mushrooms of the genus Tarfin form "witches' brooms" - a cluster inside the crowns, usually similar to a nest.
Gray alder is found throughout Europe, North America and Asia Minor. In the wild it grows quickly, bears fruit once a year, but abundantly, the seeds are dispersed by wind or water. Often grows in pairs with black alder near water.
Also widespread in Siberia along with downy alder. medium in height (20 m) with a relatively thin trunk (up to 50 cm in diameter). The tree grows in sunny areas, is frost-resistant and can withstand strong winds thanks to the flexibility of the branches.
The leaves are jagged, rough, oval and up to 10 cm long. Gray alder tolerates stagnation of water in the soil. It does not occur on sandy and sandy loam soils due to low acidity and humidity. 
The Japanese plant species lives on everything east coast Asia. Distinguished by its olive-colored branches. Standard height (up to 25 m). The crown is dense and rounded. The leaves are sparsely toothed, smooth and no more than 12 cm in length.
Female inflorescences - up to 8 pieces at the end of the racemes. Due to the fact that the leaves last until the first frost, it is popular in. 
One of, but can reach the height of a tree. The description of this species does not differ from the standard one. However, the habitat includes only the states North America. The crown is not dense, the trunk is thin and flexible, sometimes up to 10 m high.
Cordifolia can be found in Iran and Azerbaijan. This species does not tolerate winter. The structure of cordifolia lacks organs that limit moisture consumption. That is why the plant is found in wetlands.
The leaves are dense and slightly rounded. Only those forests where heart-leaved alder grows can be located in river valleys. 
This species is found in both temperate and subarctic climates. fast growing with a dense crown. Easily adapts to any living conditions. It is distinguished by its frost resistance, because it grows even in the Arctic.
Green alder is often called a transitional step between birch and alder. After all, also this type takes the life form of a tree (on Far East). Staminate catkins are often paired.
The leaves are toothed, slightly rough, dark green in color. In the tundra, green alder can bloom even in July and August.
Areas of application of the plant
The diversity of Wilha species, distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere, allows for many uses. After all, the tree grows quite quickly and even in the wild it aggressively occupies large areas.
Alder contains tannins in its composition. Thanks to the flexibility of the trunk, the wood is soft and easy to process.
In folk medicine
The bark and leaves of the tree are endowed with astringent substances. Therefore, a moistened black alder leaf can be applied to the wound so that it heals faster. The wound can also be disinfected with a vodka infusion of cones or earrings.
Infusions from the plant's earrings also help with constipation. By using infusions of flowers picked at the very beginning of flowering, you can get rid of diathesis in children. A decoction of the bark helps relieve stomach pain.
To do this, you need to brew 15 g of bark with one glass of boiling water. Then let cool and strain. Take 3-4 times a day for several days. 1 tablespoon at a time will be enough. 
But remember that treatment with alder may not always help or will only eliminate symptoms. Therefore, seek qualified medical help.