Fagus orientalis

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Fagus orientalis
Oriental Beech Fagus orientalis.jpg
Oriental beech [1]
Fagus orientalis-dkrb(2).jpg
foliage, fruits and trunk.
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Fagales
Family: Fagaceae
Genus: Fagus
Species:
F. orientalis
Binomial name
Fagus orientalis

Fagus orientalis, commonly known as the Oriental beech, is a deciduous tree in the beech family Fagaceae. It is native to Eurasia, in Eastern Europe and Western Asia.

Contents

Description

In the Caucasus Mountains, Georgia. Fagus orientalis Lagodekhi3.jpg
In the Caucasus Mountains, Georgia.

Fagus orientalis is a large tree, capable of reaching heights of up to 45 m (148 ft) tall and 3 m (9.8 ft) trunk diameter, though more typically 25–35 m (82–115 ft) tall and up to 1.5 m (4 ft 11 in) trunk diameter.

The leaves are alternate, simple, and entire or with a slightly crenate margin, 7–15 cm (2.8–5.9 in) long and 5–9 cm (2.0–3.5 in) broad, with 7–13 veins on each side of the leaf (6–7 veins in F. sylvatica). The buds are long and slender, 15–30 millimetres (0.59–1.18 in) long and 2–3 mm (0.079–0.118 in) thick, but thicker, till 4–5 mm (0.16–0.20 in), where the buds include flower buds.

The flowers are small catkins which appear shortly after the leaves in spring.

The seeds are small triangular nuts 15–20 mm (0.59–0.79 in) long and 7–10 mm (0.28–0.39 in) wide at the base; there are two nuts in each cupule, maturing in the autumn 5–6 months after pollination. The cupule differs from that of European beech (Fagus sylvatica) in having flattened, slightly leaf-like appendages at the base (which are slender, soft spines in European beech).

Taxonomy

Fagus orientalis is closely related to Fagus sylvatica (the European beech), and hybridises with it in the Balkans and northwestern Turkey. These hybrids with European Beech are named Fagus × taurica .

Distribution and habitat

The tree's natural range extends from southeastern Bulgaria's Strandja mountain range and Greece through northwest Turkey, and east to the Caucasus Mountains in Georgia and Russia, as well as the Alborz Mountains in Iran.

Use

The wood of Fagus orientalis is heavy, hard, strong and highly resistant to shock. These features makes it suitable for steam bending. The wood is also a source to fuelwood and can be used for constructions particleboard, furniture, flooring veneer, mining poles, railway tiles and paper. [3]

See also

Related Research Articles

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The Fagaceae are a family of flowering plants that includes beeches, chestnuts and oaks, and comprises eight genera with about 927 species. 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 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.

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References

  1. Cirrus Digital Oriental Beech – Fagus orientalis
  2. Rivers, M.C.; Barstow, M. (2017). "Fagus orientalis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2017: e.T79914188A109616835. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T79914188A109616835.en . Retrieved 18 November 2021.
  3. Kandemirm, G.; Kaya, Z. (2009). "Oriental beech - Fagus orientalis: Technical guidelines for genetic conservation and use" (PDF). EUFORGEN: European Forest Genetic Resources Programme. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 October 2016.