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BEECH 



(Fagus grandifolia Ehrh.) 



TTHE beech occurs throughout the State. It makes 

 its best growth, however, in the moist coves in 

 the mountains. It is widely found scattered with 

 oaks and hickories on rich, well-drained bottoms, 

 and in the mountains sometimes occurs in unmixed, 

 denae stands. It is one of the most beautiful of all 

 trees, either in summer or winter. 



The simple, oval leaves are 3 

 to 4 inches long, pointed at the 

 tip, and coarsely toothed along 



BEECH 

 One-half natural size. 



the margin. When mature, they are almost leathery 

 in texture. The beech produces a dense shade. The 

 winter buds are long, slender and pointed. 



The bark is, perhaps, the most distinctive charac- 

 teristic, as it maintains an unbroken, light gray sur- 

 face throughout its life. So tempting is this smooth 

 expanse to the owner of a jackknife that the beech 

 has been well designated the "initial tree." 



The little, brown, three-sided beech nuts are almost 

 as well known as chestnuts. They form usually in 

 pairs in a prickly burr. The kernel is sweet and 

 edible, but so small as to offer insufficient reward for 

 the pains of biting open the thin-shelled husk. 



The wood of the beech is very hard, strong, and 

 tough, though it will not last long on exposure to 

 weather or in the soil. The tree is of no great eco- 

 nomic importance as a lumber tree, though the wood 

 is used to some extent for furniture, flooring, car- 

 penters' tools, and novelty wares. 



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