 |
| Fagus sylvatica – European Beech |
European Beech Scientific name is Fagus sylvatica is one of the best
known trees in Europe. It is seen particularly
on chalk and limestone formations such as the Cotswold’s, Chilterns and Downs. It is graceful tall tree, reaching heights of up to 49 m (160 ft) tall and 3 m (10 ft) trunk diameter, sometimes called 'The
Lady of the Woods'. The thick shade which it sheds usually keeps the forest
floor bereft of undergrowth. The mature, almost mono-culture beech wood, has a
beauty rarely surpassed. It is also a long living tree that has a typical lifespan of 150 to 200 years, though sometimes up to 300 years.
The new shoots, grey and transparent, develop into long,
thin, zigzag twigs which hold pale brown winter buds, set alternately and long
and slender, with papery scales, 5–10 cm long and 3–7 cm broad, with 6-7 veins on each side of the leaf . The leaves are a tender pale green when opening in April, later becoming a rich deep green shade. They are oval, end in
a short point and have a wavy margin which with the veins on the underside and
the leaf-stalks are at first hairy. In autumn the leaves change to glorious
tints of bronze, orange and gold. Trees below a height of about 10 ft retain
their spent red-brown leaves throughout winter, but larger trees strew them
over the forest floor until they are swept by the wind to lie in deep drifts.
The male catkins are borne in groups of two or three soon
after the leaves open, each catkin has a long thin drooping stalk which bears
two or three slender scale leaves and ends in a tassel of about fifteen
greenish flowers. The female catkins are small, green, and lie close to the
stem. At first the fruit is an egg-shaped pointed green husk, clad in soft
green hairs. In the autumn the husks turn brown, and after splitting into four
lobes to release one or two triangular, smooth shining brown seeds (‘beech
nuts’), they often persist on the tree until the following spring. Good ‘mast
years’ occur infrequently. The nuts provide, with acorns, pannage for pigs.
 |
| Fagus sylvatica – European Beech |
The thin bark is of a typical bright silver-grey or metallic
color and remains smooth throughout the tree’s life. In some parts of the
country the naked circular columnar trunks have in part almost a purplish
sheen. In outline Beech is large, upright, with a crown comprising a spreading
network of fine branches. Its base is almost always but-tressed. The wood is
hard and strong, of a bright buff color with mid-brown flecks (‘pith rays’).
Among its chief uses are furniture and turnery goods such as tool handles,
bowls and spoons.
Beech freely regenerates from fallen seed. It is usually
planted pure or as groups in a matrix of other trees or as an underpants. It
has a high amenity value.
