American Beech

Fagus grandifolia

Fagaceae (Beech Family)

▲▼ mature trees

▲ fruit

▲▼ smooth gray bark (unless carved, below)

▲ did not have extreme damage after 2007 ice storm in Springfield, MO

Location on campus:  two mature trees on south side of Cheek Hall

Fagus grandifolia: American Beech

·         leaves alternate, simple, deciduous, ovate with entire to slightly toothed margins and pointed tip; 2-5" long and 1/3-1/2 as wide; glossy dark green above and glabrous below; veins extend to leaf margin serrations; leaves often golden yellow in fall

·         stems slender, zig-zag, smooth, gray; buds long and pointed

·         bark smooth gray even on large trees

·         grows 50-70' tall in an upright oval form

·         fruit is a small spiny capsule with 2-3 three-sided nuts inside

·         prefers partial shade and deep, moist, well-drained, high organic matter acid soil; needs adequate moisture for establishment, but will not tolerate wet soils

·         slow to medium growth rate

·         native to Missouri