TREES OF PARKFAIRFAX: EUROPEAN BEECH

Another of the non-native trees gracing Parkfairfax is the European Beech.  The species has been used in North American and European gardens for centuries. The European Beech grows to 50-60 feet high and 35-45 feet wide.  In its youth it is pyramidal to oval in shape, with branching to the ground when not pruned.  It becomes more rounded in later age, but according to Dirr “never loses its stately elegance.” 

The leaves are 2-4 inches in length, dark green on top with a wavy margin either untoothed or edged with small teeth.  Leaves turn yellow, golden brown or russet in the fall and are retained on the tree well into winter.  One of the tree’s most distinctive features is the gray “elephant hide-like bark” (Dirr). The beech produces a husked fruit containing one to three small, edible nuts valued by squirrels and other wildlife.

Our European Beech can be found on the island at the end of Greenway Place just off Gunston Road.  It’s cousin, the American Beech, can be seen in natural woodlands in our region. In fact,  one mature American Beech and some two dozen or more offspring can be seen in our own woodlands along Valley Drive as you cross Gunston Road.

For more information about the European or American Beech see:

Dirr, Michael A . Dirr’s Hardy Trees and Shrubs.  Timber Press, 1997