Beech: the secrets of the forest and how to grow the “graffiti tree”

The beech, named after its botanical name Fagus sylvatica it is a tree present mainly in western Europe and historically it was born in England. In other places it has always been planted even though beech trees now grow everywhere. Many of what appear to be ancient beech trees have actually been planted by man in very recent times. The large beech woods were almost totally planted around the 18th century. For wealthy landowners it became very fashionable to add beech trees to properties in the 17th/18th centuries, due to their grand appearance. In 1987 when southern England was hit by the great storm, many beech trees were destroyed. Their place was thus taken by rapidly growing trees such as sycamore and ash. There is an interesting curiosity about the beech: originally the writing was carved right on its wood, since it is very soft; this tradition is still carried forward, so much so that today the beech is called as the“graffiti tree”.

Cultivation and growth

The perfect climate for growing beech is called ”oceanic”, and has the characteristic of having high atmospheric humidity. Specifically this one it is a plant that does not like hot or cold temperatures that are too high. The category to which it belongs is that of acidophilic plantsit therefore needs to be planted in acidic soil (with a pH not exceeding 6.5) and to be watered very often. In wooded areas rainwater also satisfies it, while for crops of small types it is better than the ground is irrigated regularly every 2/3 days. Young plants, especially in their first two years of life, risk dying if they are not given the correct amount of water they need. There must be no stagnant water in the soil, it must dry out between one watering and another.

The beech is a tree mainly present in Western Europe, which can also reach theheight of 30-40 meters. Its in the fall leaves turn golden-yellow and the red varieties highlight i warm colors around the red-brick up to pink as the chlorophyll disappears, giving life to a incredible foliage.

It has leaves that are about 9 centimeters long, with small wavy margins and five to seven pairs of parallel veins. It has a gray and smooth bark, and in the autumn season it develops bristly pods that fall and when they open, they show seeds resembling walnuts inside them. Usually does not strip during the winter, unless there are severe frosts and you do not exceed 1000 meters in alpine areas. In Italian beech forests, the trees strip from October and the phenomenon occurs at the end of November in the milder areas. Especially in the young trees the dead leaves remain attached very often throughout the winter. When they fall, they fill the earth so much that another tree grows shortly after, and it is precisely in this way that the woods become totally of beech, being called beech woods. These trees can grow very tall and can live up to 300 years.

The fruits of the beech tree

You can see on the ground when walking, the fruits of the beech, called beechnuts. The latter are small, with a triangular section and contained in a shiny brown shell (pericarp). These fruits are edible but before they can be eaten it is important that they are heated so that the toxins inside them are eliminated. Beans are rich in B vitamins but also in unsaturated fats, zinc, iron and potassium. Raw contain a slightly poisonous substance, trimethylamine and hydrogen cyanide, substances that can cause side effects such as nausea, vomiting or stomach ache. However, it is enough to roast or pour very hot water on the beans to be able to neutralize these substances. In this way these fruits can be consumed, adding them to salads or muesli or munching on them. Indeed, in times of poverty they were also pressed to produce oil, used as a substitute for coffee or ground to produce flour.

The beech is the cosmic tree that nourishes and sustains the universe. In no culture has he been associated with any important deity. But it has always played a fundamental role as divining plant and was probably considered a link between the gods and man. The archetype of the beech is Saturn, which represents both the descent of the spirit into matter but also the movement that matter makes towards the spirit. In this way the tree becomes a bridge between man and God, between matter and spirit. The beech with its structure demonstrates how there can be a perfect harmony between different dimensions, concentrating the energy of the cosmos, within a functional and well-defined form.