Definately remarkable (finally got to it).
A few things:
I too loved the birch tree scene. The scene with the murderers at the gate was also beautiful, I thought. I also really loved the way that nature was used visually, between the spring, the birds, the smoke and the sun.
Am I the only one that was astonished by the relative speed of the story? The plot was, well not fast, but I would say very condensed, by standards of the period and especially by those of today.
I also just wanted to see what everyone else thought of the silence. As Ang Lee and Knonky have pointed out, it is extremely important in the violent scenes, but it plays a pivotal role overall. More than anything, it seems to represent God in relation to humanity. There is constant silence coming from God (or at least from the icons representing him) that is met with prayer, cries and song from humanity. How the characters react to this interplay of silence molds their relationships with God. Also, it may display a certain opinion about God and his choice of expression, as God appears to foresake his icons and direct pleas and would rather answer through the beauty and splendor of his creations, like the sun, birds and springs. This would also give potential explaination for how the "virgin spring" may, in fact, be a kind of answer to Tore, though somewhat circuitous.
Just to conclude, it was a saddening, beautiful, masterful film, ranking amoung the best film can offer. Though, as far as Bergman is concerned, it does not quite match what I've experienced as his best work. I don't feel it is on par with Wild Strawberries or Fanny and Alexander. I wouldn't even say it's as good as The Seventh Seal, but to say any of this is not to say anything actually bad about this piece of genius.