How to Grow and Care for American Beech - Kiến Thức Cho Người lao Động Việt Nam

Common Name
American beech tree

Botanical Name
Fagus grandifolia

Family
Fagaceae

Plant Type
Tree

Mature Size
50-80 ft. tall, 40–80 ft. wide

Sun Exposure
Full, partial

Soil Type
Moist, well-drained

Soil pH
Acidic

Bloom Time
Spring

Flower Color
Yellow, green

Hardiness Zones
3-9 (USDA)

Native Area
North America

Toxicity
Mildly toxic to humans and animals

American Beech Care

The American beech is a deciduous tree in the Fagus genus, which also includes the European beech (Fagus sylvatia), another popular landscape tree. American beech (F. grandifolia) appeals to native plant enthusiasts, though in many ways is inferior to the much more popular European species.

It can be difficult to find a container-grown American beech tree at your local garden center because they grow very slowly and a container-grown tree would be unreasonably expensive for the nursery. But you can usually buy a bare-root American beech online to plant in the late winter to early spring (it can also be done in fall). Soak the bare roots overnight before planting. (If you purchased a ball-and-burlap tree, soak the ball thoroughly with a hose as you prepare a planting hole).

Choose a planting spot with deep, well-drained soil, and where there is plenty of room. The American beech tree occasionally reaches over 100 feet tall. Even at half that (the more common height for it in the landscape), this is a specimen meant for large properties. Newly planted trees can be susceptible to the wind, so it’s a good idea to drive a stake and tie the tree trunk loosely to the stake for the first few months of growth. However, at this point, the stake should be removed, as the tree will develop better long-term strength if the wood is allowed to flex in the wind.

The Spruce / Evgeniya Vlasova

Fagus grandifolia trunks in the winter

Dcrjsr / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 3.0

Light

Like most large shade trees, American beech prefers full sun (six or more hours per day), but it will also do quite well in partial shade.

Soil

Of all the conditions recommended for American beech trees, the most important is deep, well-drained soil. A soil that drains well will discourage fungi. And furnishing deep soil may help discourage the shallow rooting so problematic for this tree. Shallow rooting can wreck nearby hardscape features, causing sidewalks and driveways to heave.

Water

This plant has average water needs. Make sure it gets about 1 inch of water per week through rainfall and/or irrigation. Do not allow water to puddle around the tree, as this can cause root rot. Fully mature American beech trees will tolerate short dry spells, but this is not a tree well suited for a long drought.

Fertilizer

American beech is best fed annually with a balanced fertilizer. In early spring, apply 1 pound of fertilizer per 100 square feet. Spread it over the ground directly under the tree’s canopy and water it in.

Types of Beech

There are no named cultivars of the American beech, but there are some excellent versions of the European beech that should be considered:

European beech (Fagus sylvatica): This is a very similar tree to the American beech, but with a slightly darker bark and a less dense growth habit. It is also much more tolerant of pollution and urban conditions.
Copper beech (F. sylvatica ‘Purpurea’): This is a notable cultivar of the European beech, with beautiful coppery-purple leaves.
(F. sylvatica ) ‘Purpurea Tricolor’ Tricolor beech : This is another good cultivar of the European beech. It has very unusual variegated leaves with pink, white, and green colors. It is a smaller tree, growing to a maximum of 30 feet.

Pruning

These trees will readily sucker from the shallow roots. Keep these suckers cut away as they appear. Damaged or diseased limbs can be removed as you notice them. With diseased branches, it is fine to cut them back to a point a foot or so below the diseased area.

American beech tends to develop a low canopy, so if you prefer a more towering tree, cut away low branches. Because large forks tend to be weak, it is best to remove one of the two branches as these forks appear. This will be easiest to do as the tree is young and still developing; mature trees will probably need an arborist to do the trimming.

Late winter or early spring, before the tree has begun active new growth, is the best time to perform major trimming for shape.

Propagating American Beech

The American beech is a slow-growing tree, which makes DIY propagation rare. That said, it can be done fairly easily, both by seeds and stem cuttings. Here’s how to propagate a new tree from stem cuttings:

Using sanitized and sharp pruners, take 6- to 10-inch cuttings from the tip of the branch, from new wood no more than a year old. The fall is the best time for this process.
Remove the bottom leaves and soak the cut end in a bucket of water. While the branch soaks, fill a small pot with a mixture of potting soil and wood-based compost (such as pine bark compost).
Dip the cut end of the branch in rooting hormone, then plant it in the prepared potting mix.
Moisten the potting mix and cover the pot with a loose clear plastic bag. Place the pot in a bright location and continue to grow it until roots begin to develop and new leaves begin to sprout.
Once the cutting is rooted, remove the plastic bag and continue to grow it indoors over the winter (or on a patio, if you live in a warm climate). By the following spring, the cutting can be planted in the landscape to grow into a tree.

How to Grow American Beech From Seed

Gather some dried, ripe beechnuts from the tree in the fall, and plant each one in a container filled with potting mix. Cover the seeds with 1/2 inch of potting mix and place them in a sunny indoor location. Keep the potting mix moist but not wet until the seed sprouts, then continue growing in a bright location.

At the end of the first year, transplant the seedling into a larger pot and continue growing it until it attains a height of 1 to 3 feet, at which time it is ready to plant in the landscape. You’ll need patience, as this can take several years.

Overwintering

American beech is a very hardy species that requires no special cold protection. When the tree is young, you may want to protect the trunk of the tree with hardware cloth or a metal guard to shield the bark from rabbits and other gnawing animals. After a few years, this kind of winter protection will no longer be necessary.

Common Pests & Plant Diseases

Like the American elm tree (Ulmus americana) and the American chestnut tree (Castanea dentata), the American beech tree has been under attack from a foreign invader and suffers from a serious disease: beech bark disease. Two things working together cause this disease: a non-native insect (the beech scale) and certain fungi (Nectria species). The beech scale insects pierce the bark (the bark is thin, making their task easier) to remove sap. These piercings give the fungi open access to the insides of the tree. The result is bark cankers. At worst, death can result from beech bark disease. At best, the tree’s looks will be marred. Control of the disease is possible, but it is difficult and best left to professionals.

Understanding what causes beech bark disease should dissuade you from engaging in the time-honored practice of carving initials in the bark that will be visible for decades. The thinness of the bark is what has made this tree the preferred target of such carving: A knife easily pierces the bark, leading to scarring that never heals. Just as piercings from an insect can open the way to damaging fungi, human-made injury has the same effect.

How to Get American Beech to Bloom

American beech is a monoecious species, producing both male and female flowers on the same plant. They are not showy, so the only reason to be concerned about flowers is if you want the plant to produce nuts, which are the product of the female flowers. But unless you hang around for decades, it’s possible that you’ll never see a tree you plant produce nuts. That’s because it can take 40 years or more before a beech tree is sufficiently mature to begin flowering and producing nuts.

If you have a mature tree that is already producing flowers and nuts, be aware that it’s common for the yield to vary from year to year. Typically, there’s a heavy flower/nut production every two or three years, with a much sparser yield in other years.

To encourage flower and nut production, simply keep the tree as healthy as possible, especially when it comes to providing adequate water. These trees don’t like extended drought.

Common Problems With American Beech

Keep an eye out for issues with your American beech tree. They can cause a few little nuisances as they grow.

Roots Are Disrupting the Lawn

American beech is notorious for developing shallow, exposed roots that can extend quite a distance. While deep soil preparation can encourage the tree to root itself downward rather than out, once a tree begins to exhibit an extensive exposed root system, there’s little you can do about it. At this point, the best strategy might be to convert the area below the canopy from lawn grass to a shade-garden bed covered with thick mulch to hide the roots.

Canopy Is Too Low

Beech trees are known for having low limbs that can interfere with pedestrian movement and create such dense shade that lawn grass won’t thrive beneath it. A beech tree’s canopy can be raised by pruning away the lowest limbs, but this is best done on a young tree over several years. With an older, mature tree, it can be damaging to cut away many large limbs all at once, so if it must be done, spread the pruning over several years.

Tree Suckers Constantly

One of the big drawbacks of the American beech tree is that it spreads by sending up suckering sprouts from its extensive root system. In a native habitat, this can allow a single tree to colonize into an entire dense thicket of trees, but in a traditional landscape, this habit can be an annoyance. These suckers should be cut away as they appear to prevent them from diverting energy away from the main tree.

FAQ

Is American beech a good tree?

The American beech is a good landscape and yard tree. This massive, long-lived tree with its broad, oval-shaped canopy is normally planted as a shade tree, but it also has ornamental value as a specimen tree for large properties. However, it tends toward shallow broad-reaching roots, so it should be planted well away from hardscape structures. American beech turns a golden bronze color in fall. It is not especially showy on its own but can provide a nice contrast with other, more colorful trees.
How can I tell the difference between an American beech and a European beech?

The clearest difference is that the American beech has leaves with serrated edges, while the European beech has smooth-edged leaves. On the unripened fruit, the spines of the American beech are usually straight, while the spines on the fruit of European beech are often curly. Finally, the leaves on American beech are longer and narrower, while European beech has more oval-shaped leaves. European beech is a slightly smaller tree, and as a landscape tree, it may be preferable to the American beech, which is somewhat sensitive to urban conditions and has a troublesome suckering habit.
How long does an American beech tree live?

It’s quite common for an American beech in good health to live more than 150 years. There are some existing specimens believed to be more than 300 years old.
Does this tree have wildlife value?

Yes. Creatures such as squirrels, chipmunks, and many birds love to feed on the ripened nuts of this tree. In wilder regions, the nuts may even be popular with bears.