Fagus sylvatica
Beech
a perennial woody deciduous member of the Fagus genus in the family Fagaceae.
Taxonomy and growth
Uses
Toxicity
Toxicity warning. The historical record reports a hazard for this plant. Do not use it to decide which parts are safe to eat or use medicinally.
This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.
Edible uses
This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.
Young leaves - raw[9]. A very nice mild flavour, they go well in a mixed salad. However, the leaves quickly become tough so only the youngest should be used[2, 5, 12, K]. New growth is usually produced for 2 periods of 3 weeks each year, one in spring and one in mid-summer. Seed - raw or cooked[12][20][26][23][9]. A pleasant sweet flavour, though rather small and fiddly[K]. The seed can also be dried and ground into a powder and then used with cereal flours when making bread, cakes etc[5]. The seed is rich in oil. The seed should not be eaten in large quantities because it contains a deleterious principle[24][15]. The seed contains 17 - 20% of an edible semi-drying oil[18][26][28][21]. This stores well without going rancid and is said to be equal in delicacy to olive oil[9]. It is used as a dressing for salads and also for cooking[15]. The seed residue is poisonous[29][21]. The roasted seed is used as a coffee substitute[12][23].
- Product or use
- Coffee
- Product or use
- Oil
- Plant part
- Leaves
- Plant part
- Seed
Medicinal uses
Historical medicinal uses. These records describe reported uses. They do not establish safety or effectiveness. Ask a qualified health professional before using any plant medicinally.
This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.
The bark is antacid, antipyretic, antiseptic, antitussive, expectorant, odontalgic[26][29]. A tar (or creosote), obtained by dry distillation of the branches, is stimulating and antiseptic[18]. It is used internally as a stimulating expectorant and externally as an application to various skin diseases[18][15]. The pure creosote has been used to give relief from toothache, but it should not be used without expert guidance[26]. The plant is used in Bach flower remedies - the keywords for prescribing it are 'Intolerance', 'Criticism' and 'Passing judgements'[14].
- Product or use
- Antacid
- Product or use
- Antipyretic
- Product or use
- Antiseptic
- Product or use
- Antitussive
- Product or use
- Bach
- Product or use
- Expectorant
- Product or use
- Odontalgic
- Product or use
- Skin
Material uses
This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.
A semi-drying oil is obtained from the seed, it is used as a fuel for lighting, as a lubricant, for polishing wood etc[5][7][19][21][23]. The seed residue is poisonous[29][21]. The leaf buds harvested in the winter and dried on the twigs are used as toothpicks[25]. The leaves are gathered in autumn and used as a stuffing material for mattresses etc[4]. Wood - hard, heavy, strong, very durable[7][19]. It is not suitable for outdoor use[1] and is often attacked by a small beetle[18]. It has a wide range of applications, including furniture, flooring, turnery etc[2]. It makes a very good fuel[22][25], burning with a lot of heat[18], and yields a charcoal known as 'Carbo Ligni Pulveratus'[19]. The wood has often been used as a source of creosote, tar, methyl alcohol. acetic acid[6].
- Product or use
- Charcoal
- Product or use
- Fuel
- Product or use
- Stuffing
- Product or use
- Dental care
- Product or use
- Wood
Ecology and functions
- Ecosystem niche
- Canopy
Environment
- Range
- Europe, including Britain, from Norway south and east to Spain, Greece, W. Russia and the Crimea.
- Habitat
- Grows in woodlands where it is often the dominant species, especially on chalky and soft limestone soils, though sometimes also on well-drained loams and sands[7][8].
- Light
- full sun
- Shade tolerance
- permanent shade
- Water
- moderate
- Hardiness
- Zone 5+
- Soil textures
- sandy, loamy, clay
- Soil pH
- very acid, acid, neutral, alkaline, very alkaline
- Drainage
- well drained
- Tolerances
- high wind
- Wind
- Yes
- Tolerates Nutritionally Poor Soil
- No
- Drought
- intolerant
Propagation
This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.
Seed - the seed has a short viability and is best sown as soon as it is ripe in the autumn in a cold frame. Protect the seed from mice. Germination takes place in the spring. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. The seedlings are slow growing for the first few years and are very susceptible to damage by late frosts. The seed can also be sown in an outdoor seedbed in the autumn[10]. The seedlings can be left in the open ground for three years before transplanting, but do best if put into their final positions as soon as possible and given some protection from spring frosts.
Cultivation
This section contains historical Plants For A Future notes marked noncommercial.
Thrives on a light or medium soil, doing well on chalk, but ill-adapted for a heavy wet soil[1][3]. Prefers a calcareous soil but succeeds in acid soils though it does not make such a fine tree in such a situation[10]. Succeeds in almost any soil and any pH, it is also very tolerant of a wide range of climatic conditions so long as there is sufficient rainfall[13]. Established trees are drought tolerant[10]. Very wind tolerant but dislikes salt[13]. Trees are shallow rooted and this might make them less wind resistant[10]. Trees have two growth periods a year, each of about 3 weeks in duration. The first is in spring around the end of April, the second is in summer, around the end of July. Trees are often slow growing and also can be very slow to establish after transplanting. However, in good conditions they are capable of growing up to a metre in a year. Young trees are very shade tolerant, but are subject to frost damage to their flowers and young leaves and so are best grown in a woodland position which will protect them[13]. An important food plant for many caterpillars, it has 64 species of associated insects[16]. Trees have a heavy canopy and cast a dense shade, very few other species can grow in a dense beech wood and on suitable soils it becomes the dominant species[10]. Very intolerant of coppicing, trees producing none or only very weak growth afterwards and this is soon smothered by other plants[10]. Plants are very tolerant of light pruning however and if this is carried out in late summer the plants will retain their dead leaves over winter[17]. There are many named forms selected for their ornamental value. Those forms with purple leaves prefer a position in full sun whilst forms with yellow leaves prefer some shade[11]. This species is notably resistant to honey fungus[13].
References
F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951-00-00
Polunin. O. Flowers of Europe - A Field Guide. Oxford University Press 1969-00-00 ISBN 0192176218
Bean. W. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. Murray 1981-00-00
Johnson. C. P. The Useful Plants of Great Britain.
Loewenfeld. C. and Back. P. Britain's Wild Larder. David and Charles ISBN 0-7153-7971-2
? Encyclopaedia Britannica. 15th edition.
Triska. Dr. Hamlyn Encyclopaedia of Plants. Hamlyn 1975-00-00 ISBN 0-600-33545-3
Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962-00-00
Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990-00-00 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Beckett. G. and K. Planting Native Trees and Shrubs. Jarrold 1979-00-00
Brickell. C. The RHS Gardener's Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers Dorling Kindersley Publishers Ltd. 1990-00-00 ISBN 0-86318-386-7
Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972-00-00 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992-00-00 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Chancellor. P. M. Handbook of the Bach Flower Remedies C. W. Daniel Co. Ltd. 1985-00-00 ISBN 85207 002 0
Bown. D. Encyclopaedia of Herbs and their Uses. Dorling Kindersley, London. 1995-00-00 ISBN 0-7513-020-31
Baines. C. Making a Wildlife Garden.
Shepherd. F.W. Hedges and Screens. Royal Horticultural Society. 1974-00-00 ISBN 0900629649
Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984-00-00 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9
Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959-00-00
Mabey. R. Food for Free. Collins 1974-00-00 ISBN 0-00-219060-5
Schery. R. W. Plants for Man.
Mabey. R. Plants with a Purpose. Fontana 1979-00-00 ISBN 0-00-635555-2
Howes. F. N. Nuts. Faber 1948-00-00
Frohne. D. and Pf�nder. J. A Colour Atlas of Poisonous Plants. Wolfe 1984-00-00 ISBN 0723408394
Freethy. R. From Agar to Zenery. The Crowood Press 1985-00-00 ISBN 0-946284-51-2
Chiej. R. Encyclopaedia of Medicinal Plants. MacDonald 1984-00-00 ISBN 0-356-10541-5
Cooper. M. and Johnson. A. Poisonous Plants in Britain and their Effects on Animals and Man. HMSO 1984-00-00 ISBN 0112425291
Ceres. Free for All. Thorsons Publishers 1977-00-00 ISBN 0-7225-0445-4
Launert. E. Edible and Medicinal Plants. Hamlyn 1981-00-00 ISBN 0-600-37216-2