{"id":19191,"date":"2022-05-03T12:47:27","date_gmt":"2022-05-03T16:47:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/fnr\/extension\/?p=19191"},"modified":"2025-08-01T09:53:29","modified_gmt":"2025-08-01T13:53:29","slug":"trees-of-indiana-beech","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/fnr\/extension\/trees-of-indiana-beech\/","title":{"rendered":"Intro to Trees of Indiana: Beech"},"content":{"rendered":"

The classic and trusted book “Fifty Common Trees of Indiana” by T.E. Shaw was\u00a0published in 1956 as a user-friendly guide to local species.\u00a0\u00a0Nearly 70 years later, the publication has\u00a0been updated through a joint effort by the Purdue Department of Forestry and Natural Resources,\u00a0Indiana 4-H<\/a>, and\u00a0the\u00a0Indiana Department of Natural Resources<\/a>, and reintroduced as “An Introduction to Trees of Indiana.”<\/p>\n

The\u00a0full publication<\/a>\u00a0is available for download for $7 in the Purdue Extension Education Store. The field guide helps identify common Indiana woodlot trees.<\/p>\n

Each week, the Intro to\u00a0Trees of Indiana web\u00a0series will offer a sneak peek at one species from the book, paired with an\u00a0ID That Tree video from Purdue Extension forester\u00a0Lenny Farlee<\/a>\u00a0to help visualize each species as it stands in the woods.\u00a0Threats to species\u00a0health\u00a0as well as\u00a0also\u00a0insight into the wood provided by the species, will be provided\u00a0through additional resources as well as the\u00a0Hardwoods of the Central Midwest<\/a>\u00a0exhibit of the Purdue Arboretum, if available.\u00a0\"Drawing<\/a><\/p>\n

This week, we introduce the beech, or Fagus grandifolia.<\/p>\n

The Beech is easily identified by its smooth gray bark and its simple leaves, which feature straight-line veins from the midrib to the small teeth on the margin. Beeches produce a 3\/4-inch long fruit covered in spines, which typically holds two triangular-shaped nuts.<\/p>\n

American beech is a shade tolerant species found in the understory often on moist but well-drained soils, that also reaches up into the forest canopy at around 70 to 80 feet tall. Beech is found throughout the Great Lakes region as well as the central and southeastern United States.<\/p>\n

Beech is used to make items varying from wooden clothes pins to brush banks, handles and woodenware. Due to its strength and ease of turning, it is also used for chair production. Flooring, railroad ties, pallets and container veneer are other uses for this species.<\/p>\n