the primary objectives of this research were: 1) to compare long and short shoot growth utilizing growth analysis techniques. 2) to describe the general morphology of long and short shoots and to compare them using morphometric analysis. 3) to compare vegetative and reproductive shoot growth and to assess the cost of reproduction. 4) to study the inception and apical organization of potential long and short shoot buds at selected stages of development and ascertain any differences. 5) to compare the anatomy of long and short shoots, with emphasis on stem anatomy. 6) to correlate these data in order to develop an understanding of how long and short shoot growth in paper birch relates to other studies of long and short shoots. the results/observations and discussion, with appropriate introductory paragraphs pertaining to specific portions of this study are presented as separate chapters. a general summary chapter will collate and discuss the pertinent findings. this format is adopted to enhance convenience of presentation and readability since some of the chapters have been submitted for publication.