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Pictured: Alnus viridis — the species. This subspecies isn’t separately illustrated.
Betulaceae family

Siberian Alder (subsp. fruticosa) Alnus viridis subsp. fruticosa subspecies

Native

Siberian Alder (subsp. fruticosa) is a perennial tree native to Alaska, Canada, and the lower 48 states. A keystone plant for native insects and the food web.

More about this plant

Alnus alnobetula, the green alder, is a common shrub or small tree widespread across much of Europe, Asia, and North America. Many sources refer to it as Alnus viridis but this is a later name, synonymous with Alnus alnobetula subsp. alnobetula. The species was first described by Jakob Friedrich Ehrhart in 1783 as Betula alnobetula, while the name viridis was first used later, as Betula viridis, in 1785. Wikipedia →

Growing & care

USDA PLANTS · TRY
Conditions
Sources · Conditions
Cold hardiness (derived) — Hardiness
Hardiness
≥ zone 9 derived from its U.S. range
Size & form
Sources · Size & form
USDA PLANTS — Lifespan
Lifespan
Perennial
In the garden
Tree layer (canopy / understory) — Sits in the tree of a layered food forest or polyculture.Open guide →
derived roles
Species characteristics from USDA PLANTS (public domain) + TRY (CC BY) — general guidance, not a guarantee for your exact site. Deer "browsing" is documented palatability, not a deer-proof claim.

Wildlife & pollinators

How pollinator value is scored →
❧ Caterpillar hosts ~255 caterpillar species · keystone genus

Alnus supports ~255 caterpillar species.

Native butterfly & moth caterpillars are the base of the terrestrial food web — most songbirds rear their young almost entirely on them. As a host for native Lepidoptera this is a powerhouse genus.

Recorded feeding on Alnus in North America, including:

Abagrotis variata · owlet moth Acerra normalis · owlet moth Achatia distincta · Distinct Quaker Achatodes zeae · Elder Shoot Borer Acleris braunana · leafroller moth Acleris caliginosana · leafroller moth
+ 8 more species →
Acleris cervinana · leafroller moth Acleris cornana · leafroller moth Acleris fuscana · Small Aspen Leaftier Acleris hudsoniana · leafroller moth Acleris inana · Inane Acleris Acleris logiana · leafroller moth Acleris maccana · leafroller moth Acleris semiannula · leafroller moth
Keystone count (genus-level) from Warren II 2026 (CC0) · Tallamy host-use records. Named species (a documented Nearctic sample, not exhaustive) from NHM HOSTS (CC0).
Species thumbnails re-hosted from iNaturalist — Creative Commons, credited per image (hover for credit). Click any species to see it on iNaturalist. Not exhaustive; many taxa have no openly-licensed photo yet.
Sources for this entry (12) Open & cited
[01] Scientific name & family — USDA PLANTS (DwCA, Zenodo 17903503)
[02] Growth habit & duration — USDA PLANTS (DwCA, Zenodo 17903503)
[03] Native status & distribution — USDA PLANTS (DwCA, Zenodo 17903503)
[04] Common name — USDA PLANTS (via GBIF)
[05] Invasive / introduced status — USDA PLANTS (DwCA, Zenodo 17903503) — native status
[06] Description — Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)
[07] Ecological value — Warren II 2026 (CC0) · Tallamy host-use counts
[08] Conservation rank — NatureServe Explorer (CC BY)
[09] Cold hardiness (derived) — Derived from U.S. range × USDA PHZM zones
[10] Caterpillar host count — Warren II 2026 (Dryad, CC0) · Tallamy host-use counts
[11] Caterpillar species — NHM HOSTS (CC0)
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PlantKey’s data is open under CC BY-SA 4.0 — free to reuse and adapt, with attribution and the same licence. Photos keep their own per-image licence + credit (see Sources above).

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