Beechnut Tree Fagus grandifolia
Other Common Name(s):
- Phonetic Spelling
- FAG-us gran-dih-FOH-lee-uh
- This plant has low severity poison characteristics.
- See below
- Description
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The American beech is an edible, perennial, deciduous tree in the beech family (Fagaceae). This tree is native to eastern North America and found throughout the state of North Carolina. The species epithet, grandifolia, refers to the large leaves of the beech, which are larger than those of the European beech.
Growing to 60 to 80 feet tall or more and spreading 40 to 80 feet wide, American beech prefers moist, well-drained, acid soil; is intolerant of wet or compacted soil; and prefers sun but will tolerate shade. It is slightly salt tolerant and resistant to deer. Propagate by seed. Beech trees develop suckers from their vast system of surface roots, and entire beech groves have often grown from the roots of a single tree.
This beech is a low-branched tree and has a light gray bark that remains smooth as the tree ages. Fall leaf color is golden bronze, and leaves often last into winter. This tree has a showy brown or copper fruit containing a triangular nut that ripens in the fall.
American beech can be a beautiful tree in a large area and is not recommended for smaller landscapes. Site it in a naturalized, riparian or woodland area. An excellent shade tree, it can also be used as a border, near a street or for screening and as a wind break. It is suitable for a native garden or one for the blind. Numerous mammal and bird species eat the nuts, which are also edible by humans.
Insects, Diseases and Other Plant Problems: Beech scale is an occasional problem on this tree. Beech blight aphids are common, forming dense colonies on small branches and the undersides of leaves. The aphids are food for the Harvester butterfly (Feniseca tarquinius), North Carolina's only carnivorous butterfly.
VIDEO Created by Elizabeth Meyer for "Trees, Shrubs and Conifers," a plant identification course developed in partnership with Longwood Gardens.
- Profile Video:
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Mountain Ridge Top Garden - West Meadow and Woods
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Fagus
- Species:
- grandifolia
- Family:
- Fagaceae
- Uses (Ethnobotany):
- An excellent shade tree. This tree was used by Native Americans for building materials, medicine, and food. Wood is hard, strong, and tough though it will rot when exposed to weather or soil. The wood is used for flooring, tools, containers, and has a high fuel value.
- Life Cycle:
- Woody
- Recommended Propagation Strategy:
- Seed
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- Eastern Canada to Central Mexico
- Distribution:
- Maine to Florida, west to Texas, Oklahoma, Illinois, Michigan, and Minnesota.
- Fire Risk Rating:
- medium flammability
- Wildlife Value:
- The nuts are eaten by small mammals, white-tailed deer, black bears, foxes, ruffed grouse, wild turkeys, ducks, woodpeckers, white-breasted nuthatches, American crows and blue jays.
- Play Value:
- Screening
- Shade
- Wildlife Food Source
- Wind Break
- Edibility:
- Nutmeats, in small quantities, edible raw or cooked.
- Dimensions:
- Height: 60 ft. 0 in. - 80 ft. 0 in.
- Width: 40 ft. 0 in. - 80 ft. 0 in.
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Edible
- Native Plant
- Perennial
- Poisonous
- Tree
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Deciduous
- Habit/Form:
- Dense
- Erect
- Oval
- Pyramidal
- Rounded
- Growth Rate:
- Slow
- Maintenance:
- Low
- Texture:
- Medium
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Dappled Sunlight (Shade through upper canopy all day)
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
- Soil Texture:
- Clay
- Loam (Silt)
- Sand
- Soil pH:
- Acid (<6.0)
- Alkaline (>8.0)
- Neutral (6.0-8.0)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Moist
- Available Space To Plant:
- 6-feet-12 feet
- NC Region:
- Coastal
- Mountains
- Piedmont
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 3a, 3b, 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b
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Fruit:
- Fruit Color:
- Brown/Copper
- Fruit Value To Gardener:
- Showy
- Display/Harvest Time:
- Fall
- Fruit Type:
- Capsule
- Nut
- Fruit Description:
- Prickly brownish fruit; seeds trigonous. Nuts are irregularly triangular, shiny brown and edible. Attached in groups of 2 or 3, prickly husks that remain on the tree after the nut has fallen, 3/4 of an inch long. September to October.
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Green
- White
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Insignificant
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Spring
- Flower Description:
- Monoecious yellowish green flowers bloom from March to May on the American beech. It's male flowers form in drooping, long-stemmed, globular clusters and the female flowers in short spikes. Female flowers give way to triangular nuts enclosed by spiny bracts. Beechnuts ripen in fall and are edible.
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Leaves:
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Deciduous
- Leaf Color:
- Brown/Copper
- Gold/Yellow
- Green
- Leaf Feel:
- Glossy
- Leaf Value To Gardener:
- Showy
- Deciduous Leaf Fall Color:
- Brown/Copper
- Gold/Yellow
- Leaf Type:
- Simple
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Alternate
- Leaf Shape:
- Elliptical
- Oblong
- Ovate
- Leaf Margin:
- Serrate
- Hairs Present:
- Yes
- Leaf Length:
- 3-6 inches
- Leaf Width:
- 1-3 inches
- Leaf Description:
- Simple, alternate, ovate-oblong leaves, 2 to 5 inch long, half as wide, acuminate tip, coarsely serrate. Grouped toward the ends of branches or short branchlets. Leaves are dark green and glossy above, lighter green below, sometimes tomentose along the midrib and in vein axils on underside. Parallel veins pierce the margin; little bristles on the margin.
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Bark:
- Bark Color:
- Light Gray
- Surface/Attachment:
- Smooth
- Bark Description:
- Trunks have distinctive thin, smooth, gray bark.
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Stem:
- Stem Color:
- Gray/Silver
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Form:
- Zig Zags
- Stem Surface:
- Smooth (glabrous)
- Stem Description:
- Somewhat zig-zag, grayish, shiny. Awl-shaped, imbricate, 3/4-1" long and slender, shiny, pointy.
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Naturalized Area
- Riparian
- Woodland
- Landscape Theme:
- Garden for the Blind
- Native Garden
- Shade Garden
- Design Feature:
- Border
- Shade Tree
- Street Tree
- Attracts:
- Small Mammals
- Songbirds
- Resistance To Challenges:
- Black Walnut
- Deer
- Salt
