Beech family | |
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European beech, Fagus sylvatica | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Rosids |
Order: | Fagales |
Family: | Fagaceae Dumort. [1] |
Type genus | |
Fagus | |
Genera | |
See text. | |
The range of Fagaceae. | |
Synonyms | |
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The Fagaceae ( /fəˈɡeɪsi.iː,-ˌaɪ/ ; from Latin fagus 'beech tree') are a family of flowering plants that includes beeches, chestnuts and oaks, and comprises eight genera with about 927 species. [2] Fagaceae in temperate regions are mostly deciduous, whereas in the tropics, many species occur as evergreen trees and shrubs. They are characterized by alternate simple leaves with pinnate venation, unisexual flowers in the form of catkins, and fruit in the form of cup-like (cupule) nuts. Their leaves are often lobed, and both petioles and stipules are generally present. Their fruits lack endosperm and lie in a scaly or spiny husk that may or may not enclose the entire nut, which may consist of one to seven seeds. In the oaks, genus Quercus, the fruit is a non-valved nut (usually containing one seed) called an acorn. The husk of the acorn in most oaks only forms a cup in which the nut sits. Other members of the family have fully enclosed nuts. Fagaceae is one of the most ecologically important woody plant families in the Northern Hemisphere, as oaks form the backbone of temperate forest in North America, Europe, and Asia, and are one of the most significant sources of wildlife food.
Several members of the Fagaceae have important economic uses. Many species of oak, chestnut, and beech (genera Quercus, Castanea, and Fagus, respectively) are commonly used as timber for floors, furniture, cabinets, and wine barrels. Cork for stopping wine bottles and a myriad other uses is made from the bark of cork oak, Quercus suber. Chestnuts are the fruits from species of the genus Castanea. Numerous species from several genera are prominent ornamentals. Wood chips from the genus Fagus are often used in flavoring beers. Nuts of some species in the Asian tropical genera Castanopsis and Lithocarpus are edible and often used as ornamentals.
The Fagaceae are often divided into five or six subfamilies and are generally accepted to include 8 (to 10) genera (listed below). Monophyly of the Fagaceae is strongly supported by both morphological (especially fruit morphology) and molecular data. [3]
The Southern Hemisphere genus Nothofagus, commonly the southern beeches, was historically placed in the Fagaceae sister to the genus Fagus , [4] but recent molecular evidence suggests otherwise. While Nothofagus shares a number of common characteristics with the Fagaceae, such as cupule fruit structure, it differs significantly in a number of ways, including distinct stipule and pollen morphology, as well as having a different number of chromosomes. [5] The currently accepted view by systematic botanists is to place Nothofagus in its own family, Nothofagaceae. [3]
There are two subfamilies:
Auth. K. Koch. Monotypic
The genus Nothofagus (southern beeches: from the Southern Hemisphere), formerly included in the Fagaceae, is now treated in the separate monotypic family Nothofagaceae. [6]
Auth. Õrsted
The Quercus subgenus Cyclobalanopsis is treated as a distinct genus by the Flora of China, but as a section or subgenus by most taxonomists.
The Fagaceae are widely distributed across the Northern Hemisphere. Genus-level diversity is concentrated in Southeast Asia, [7] where most of the extant genera are thought to have evolved before migrating to Europe and North America (via the Bering Land Bridge). [8] Members of the Fagaceae (such as Fagus grandifolia , Castanea dentata and Quercus alba in the Northeastern United States, or Fagus sylvatica , Quercus robur and Q. petraea in Europe) are often ecologically dominant in northern temperate forests. More than 400 species of Fagaceae, mostly Castanopsis and Lithocarpus , grow in tropical Southeast Asia, with some species in similar dominant roles over large areas.[ citation needed ]
Modern molecular phylogenetics suggest the following relationships: [9] [10]
The Fagales are an order of flowering plants, including some of the best-known trees. The order name is derived from genus Fagus, beeches. They belong among the rosid group of dicotyledons. The families and genera currently included are as follows:
An oak is a hardwood tree or shrub in the genus Quercus of the beech family. They have spirally arranged leaves, often with lobed edges, and a nut called an acorn, borne within a cup. The genus is widely distributed in the Northern Hemisphere; it includes some 500 species, both deciduous and evergreen. Fossil oaks date back to the Middle Eocene. Molecular phylogeny shows that the genus is divided into Old World and New World clades, but many oak species hybridise freely, making the genus's history difficult to resolve.
Beech (Fagus) is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Eurasia and North America. There are 13 accepted species in two distinct subgenera, Engleriana and Fagus. The subgenus Engleriana is found only in East Asia, distinctive for its low branches, often made up of several major trunks with yellowish bark. The better known Fagus subgenus beeches are native to Europe and North America. They are high-branching trees with tall, stout trunks and smooth silver-grey bark. The European beech Fagus sylvatica is the most commonly cultivated species, yielding a utility timber used for furniture construction, flooring and engineering purposes, in plywood, and household items. The timber can be used to build homes. Beechwood makes excellent firewood. Slats of washed beech wood are spread around the bottom of fermentation tanks for Budweiser beer. Beech logs are burned to dry the malt used in some German smoked beers. Beech is also used to smoke Westphalian ham, andouille sausage, and some cheeses.
Nothofagus, also known as the southern beeches, is a genus of 43 species of trees and shrubs native to the Southern Hemisphere in southern South America and east and southeast Australia, New Zealand, New Guinea, and New Caledonia. The species are ecological dominants in many temperate forests in these regions. Some species are reportedly naturalised in Germany and Great Britain. The genus has a rich fossil record of leaves, cupules, and pollen, with fossils extending into the late Cretaceous period and occurring in Australia, New Zealand, Antarctica, and South America.
Temperate rainforests are rainforests with coniferous or broadleaf forests that occur in the temperate zone and receive heavy rain.
Lithocarpus is a genus in the beech family, Fagaceae. Trees in this genus are commonly known as the stone oaks and differ from Quercus primarily because they produce insect-pollinated flowers on erect spikes and the female flowers have short styles with punctate stigmas. At current, around 340 species have been described, mostly restricted to Southeast Asia. Fossils show that Lithocarpus formerly had a wider distribution, being found in North America and Europe during the Eocene to Miocene epochs. The species extend from the foothills of the Hengduan Mountains, where they form dominant stands of trees, through Indochina and the Malayan Archipelago, crossing Wallace's Line and reaching Papua. In general, these trees are most dominant in the uplands and have many ecological similarities to the Dipterocarpaceae, the dominant lowland tree group. These trees are intolerant of seasonal droughts, not being found on the Lesser Sunda Islands, despite their ability to cross numerous water barriers to reach Papua.
Chrysolepis is a small genus of plants in the family Fagaceae, endemic to the western United States. Its two species have the common name chinquapin. The genus occurs from western Washington south to the Transverse Ranges in Southern California, and east into Nevada.
Laurel forest, also called laurisilva or laurissilva, is a type of subtropical forest found in areas with high humidity and relatively stable, mild temperatures. The forest is characterized by broadleaf tree species with evergreen, glossy and elongated leaves, known as "laurophyll" or "lauroid". Plants from the laurel family (Lauraceae) may or may not be present, depending on the location.
Castanopsis, commonly called chinquapin or chinkapin, is a genus of evergreen trees belonging to the beech family, Fagaceae. The genus contains about 140 species, which are today restricted to tropical and subtropical eastern Asia. A total of 58 species are native to China, with 30 endemic; the other species occur further south, through Indochina to Indonesia and the Philippines, mountainous areas of Taiwan, and also in Japan. The English name chinkapin is shared with other related plants, including the golden chinkapins of the Pacific United States, which are sometimes included within Castanopsis but are more often considered a separate but very closely related genus, Chrysolepis.
Nothofagus cunninghamii, commonly known as myrtle beech or Tasmanian myrtle, is the dominant species of cool temperate rainforests in Tasmania and Southern Victoria. It has low fire resistance and grows best in partial shade conditions.
Nothofagus gunnii, the tanglefoot or deciduous beech, is a deciduous shrub or small tree endemic to the highlands of Tasmania, Australia. It was described in 1847 by R.C Gunn N. gunnii is a small woody tree with a shrubby appearance known to grow up to 8 metres (26 ft). It lives only on mountains due to temperature limitations within the Tasmanian maritime climate and mainly grows at altitudes greater than 800 metres (2,600 ft) above sea level. It grows in alpine and sub-alpine regions in the central portions of the island. Though capable of reaching the size of a small tree, it is most common as a thick shrub or woody ground cover, hence its common name of "tanglefoot".
The calybium and the cupule make up the accessory fruit of flowering plants in the family Fagaceae. These two parts derive from different flower components.
The Appalachian–Blue Ridge forests are an ecoregion in the Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests Biome, in the Eastern United States. The ecoregion is located in the central and southern Appalachian Mountains, including the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians and the Blue Ridge Mountains. It covers an area of about 61,500 square miles (159,000 km2) in: northeast Alabama and Georgia, northwest South Carolina, eastern Tennessee, western North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, and central West Virginia and Pennsylvania; and small extensions into Kentucky, New Jersey, and New York.
Chinquapin or chinkapin may refer to:
Lithocarpus hendersonianus is a tree species in the beech family Fagaceae. Trees in the genus Lithocarpus are commonly known as stone oaks and differ from Quercus primarily because they produce insect-pollinated flowers. This tree species is endemic to Peninsular Malaysia. It is categorized as Vulnerable by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, primarily due to habitat loss.
Notholithocarpus densiflorus, commonly known as the tanoak or tanbark-oak, is a broadleaf tree in the family Fagaceae, and the type species of the genus Notholithocarpus. It is native to the far western United States, particularly Oregon and California. It ranges from 15–40 meters in height, with a trunk diameter of 60–190 centimeters.
Nothofagus brassii is a species of tree in the family Nothofagaceae. It is endemic to New Guinea. It is commonly known as Sagé, sagé hitam, sahé, and kayu sagé, kayu sagé hitam (Indonesian).