Loading conditions…
Edibility
Medicinal
Lookalike Danger
1 / 5
Habitat
🌳 Live birch
Season
Year-round🌱 Now
"Not a fruiting body — a sterile canker. Simmered for hours into a dark tea. Cold northern woods only."
🌳 Host Trees & Plants
This species is found with or partners with the following hosts. Ectomycorrhizal hosts (green border) form a root-level partnership; ericoid / arbutoid shrubs (purple border) share the same mycorrhizal networks.
Birch
Betula spp.
Ectomycorrhizal
Chaga, birch bolete, birch polypore host.
Black crusty cinder-like growth on living birch. Orange-brown interior when cracked open. Parasitic — causes a persistent heartwood rot. Studied for antioxidant, immunomodulatory, and anti-cancer compounds (betulinic acid concentrated from the birch host).
Habitat
Living birch trees (especially yellow and paper birch) across boreal and northern temperate forests. Harvestable year-round.
Look for this on the ground
Base of a standing birch
Papery white-and-tan birch bark with black lenticels, mossy root flare.
Season Windows by Region
Region
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Glacier / Flathead NF
MT · 3,500–8,500 ft
Bitterroot / Sapphire
MT · 3,500–9,000 ft
Helena / Big Belts
MT · 4,000–8,500 ft
Gallatin / Madison
MT · 5,500–10,500 ft
Beartooth / Absaroka
MT · 5,000–12,000 ft
Sawtooth / Stanley Basin
ID · 6,000–10,500 ft
Clearwater Mountains
ID · 2,500–7,500 ft
Boise Mountains
ID · 4,000–9,500 ft
Salmon River / Lemhi
ID · 4,500–10,000 ft
Sun Valley / Wood River
ID · 5,500–10,500 ft
Bighorn Mountains
WY · 5,500–13,000 ft
Bridger-Teton / Tetons
WY · 6,000–13,500 ft
Wind River Range
WY · 7,000–13,800 ft
Absaroka / Shoshone NF
WY · 6,000–12,500 ft
North Cascades
WA · 1,500–8,000 ft
Central Cascades / Snoqualmie
WA · 1,500–7,000 ft
Olympic Peninsula
WA · 500–6,000 ft
Gifford Pinchot / South Cascades
WA · 1,000–8,000 ft
Okanogan Highlands
WA · 2,500–7,500 ft
Mt Hood / North Oregon Cascades
OR · 2,000–8,000 ft
Central Oregon / Deschutes
OR · 3,500–9,000 ft
South Cascades / Klamath
OR · 4,000–9,000 ft
Wallowa Mountains
OR · 3,500–9,500 ft
Blue Mountains
OR · 4,000–8,000 ft
NW IL Driftless
IL · 600–1,200 ft
SW Michigan
MI · 580–1,000 ft
Central MI
MI · 700–1,400 ft
Northern Lower Peninsula
MI · 600–1,700 ft
Upper Peninsula
MI · 600–1,979 ft
WI Driftless Area
WI · 650–1,700 ft
Central WI
WI · 750–1,400 ft
Northern WI
WI · 1,000–1,950 ft
Eastern IA River Valleys
IA · 550–1,100 ft
SE MN Driftless
MN · 650–1,350 ft
Central MN
MN · 900–1,500 ft
Catskills / Hudson Valley
NY · 400–4,180 ft
Finger Lakes / Central NY
NY · 500–2,000 ft
Acadia / Down East
ME · 0–1,530 ft
Western Maine
ME · 400–4,170 ft
Northern Maine
ME · 500–5,267 ft
White Mountains
NH · 800–6,288 ft
Lakes Region / Southern NH
NH · 300–1,800 ft
Green Mountains
VT · 800–4,393 ft
Northeast Kingdom
VT · 600–3,300 ft
Berkshires / Western MA
MA · 500–3,491 ft
Willamette Valley / Columbia Gorge
OR · 200–1,500 ft
Turtle Mountain SF
ND · 1,800–2,400 ft
Pembina Gorge
ND · 850–1,500 ft
Black Hills NF
SD · 3,200–7,242 ft
Custer NF / Slim Buttes
SD · 3,000–4,000 ft
Pine Ridge / Oglala NG
NE · 3,400–5,000 ft
Niobrara River Valley
NE · 1,900–2,700 ft
Superior NF / BWCA
MN · 1,300–2,301 ft
Chippewa NF
MN · 1,200–1,500 ft
NE Iowa Driftless / Effigy Mounds
IA · 650–1,250 ft
Adirondacks
NY · 1,000–5,344 ft
MN North Shore / Sawtooth
MN · 600–2,301 ft
SE South Dakota / Newton Hills
SD · 1,300–1,550 ft
Sheyenne NG Oak Savanna
ND · 1,000–1,350 ft
Minnesota River Valley
MN · 800–1,150 ft
Catskills North / Mountain Lakes
NY · 800–4,000 ft
Hiawatha NF / Eastern UP
MI · 600–1,100 ft
Huron NF / Lower MI
MI · 600–1,200 ft
Chequamegon NF / NW WI
WI · 1,000–1,900 ft
Black River SF / Driftless WI North
WI · 750–1,400 ft
Mid-Coast Maine
ME · 0–800 ft
Connecticut River Valley / NH
NH · 300–1,500 ft
Nebraska NF / Bessey (Sandhills)
NE · 2,500–3,200 ft
Growing Requirements
Min Soil Temp
55°F
Moisture Need
rain 0.5in 7d
Drought Tolerance
moderate
Elevation Range
0–13,800 ft
Look-Alikes
Species to rule out before picking. Each is tagged with its own edibility.
Burl / gall outgrowths
Not dangerousBurls are wood, not fungus — solid, with growth rings. Chaga is black and crumbly outside, orange/brown/spongy inside.
Burn scars on birch
Not dangerousPlain dark bark; no orange interior.
Identification Tips
- ✓Harvest only from living birch — dead-tree chaga loses potency
- ✓Take no more than 1/3 of a growth — it regrows over many years
- ✓Simmer chunks for 2+ hours; dark earthy tea
Field Notes
Live birch
Found Chaga?
Photograph it and log your observation on iNaturalist. The community can help confirm your ID — always get confirmation before eating.
Safety: Never eat any wild mushroom without 100% certain identification from multiple sources. This page is for informational purposes only. When in doubt, throw it out.