THE BEECH 229 



Although the beeches of North America thrive 

 best in limestone regions we find large beech forests 

 on soil that is more or less acid in reaction. In these 

 soils beech trees, while bearing large crops of nuts, 

 usually do not fill out the kernel well, and for that 

 reason it is only when conditions are particularly 

 favorable that one may obtain even a handful of 

 beechnuts large enough and well enough filled for 

 eating. When we have developed some tree bearing 

 particularly large beechnuts we may perhaps be 

 enabled to secure full meated nuts in acid soil regions 

 by adding lime to the soil. Our American beech, 

 Fagus ferruginea, comes into bearing very late as 

 a seedling tree, sometimes not before its thirtieth 

 year, but in all probability grafted varieties will give 

 us the history of grafted varieties of other nut trees 

 in relation to precocious bearing. 



Even when the nuts are too small for eating out 

 of hand they may be collected in quantities and the 

 oil expressed, as has been done in European coun- 

 tries. Beechnut oil is valuable for cooking purposes 

 and as a salad oil. In some parts of Europe it is 

 used in place of butter. The cakes which remain 

 after the oil is pressed out serve as food for stock 

 and fowls. In this country we have not as yet 

 reached the point where the collection of beechnuts 

 for this purpose is profitable, but in many localities 

 live stock and fowls are allowed to do their own 

 collecting so profitably that little or no corn is re- 

 quired for their fattening. We may look forward 

 to the time when the development of the beech will 

 be an important feature of nut growing. 



