Florida Forest Trees

American beech    (Fagus grandifolia)

American beech is the only member of the Fagus genus that is native to North America. It is probably best known for its very smooth, gray bark that usually has someone's initials carved into it.

The nuts have a high oil content and are a valuable source of nutrition for numerous wildlife as well. Black bear, squirrels, wild turkey, and grouse all eat significant amounts of beechnuts, while fox, ducks, bluejays, and many small rodents also consume the seeds. Chickadees nest in its branches and many animals use the hollowed-out trunks of mature trees as homes.

American beech is a slow-growing, long-lived species that may survive for 300 to 400 years. It makes an excellent shade tree.

The wood from American beech is heavy, strong, and resistant to splitting. The harvested timber is used for rough lumber, flooring, plywood, and railroad ties. Beech wood is also used to make tool handles, baskets, veneer, and novelty items. The soft, reddish tinge of the wood makes it desirable for furniture, and its naturally, clean odor makes good food storage containers.

Twigs and leaves

American beech is a high density wood that burns efficiently and has a high heat value, so it is often used for charcoal and fuelwood. Tar from the tree, called creosote, is used to protect other woods from rotting. The leaves and bark of the tree provide extracts for the making of fabric dyes. Early American colonists even used the leaves to stuff mattresses.

American beech is found throughout much of eastern North America, from Nova Scotia south and northern Florida and west as far as Texas and Arkansas.

 Identifying Characteristics
Size/Form:
 American beech is a medium sized, deciduous tree, that reaches heights of 60' to 80'. This stately tree has a short trunk and a broad, spreading, rounded crown when growing in the open, but a long, branch-free trunk when in the forest.
Leaves:
 The leaves are simple, alternately arranged, and elliptical to ovate, with distinct, parallel side veins and a sharply toothed margin. The stiff, leathery leaves are glossy and light green above, with a paler, yellow-green color below. The leaf tip is tapered. Leaves have a very short petiole and may be found clustered at the ends of small branches.
Fruit:
 The fruits are shiny, triangular, brown nuts that are encased in a prickly bur and often found in pairs, on short stalks. The nuts are small but are sweet and edible.
Bark:
 The bark is distinctively smooth, tight and steel gray, with occasional dark patches. The twigs are yellowish-gray and hairy with very long, thin, reddish-brown buds.
Habitat:
 American beech grows best in rich, moist soils and is found in bottomlands and upland forests.

Photos
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Bark
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