Texture Browser

Botanical Name

Fagus silvatica L., Fagus silvestris Gaertn., Castanea fagus Scop. (Fam. Fagaceae)

Trade Names

Faggio, Rotbuche, Beech, Hétre

Substitution

Beech accordingly adapted with regard to color; very multifunctional and inexpensive alternative for frequently used substitute timbers such as walnut and many other structural and colored homogeneous woods when it comes to interior usage. In addition to different beech-species which are similar in appearance and technical features, it is primarily possible to interchange it with the native woods of the cognate genera Nothofagus in the southern South America (Chile, Argentina) such as Coigue (N. dombeyi), Lenga (N. pumilio) and Rauli (N. Procera).

Indigenous to

The tree grows throughout Europe, in the Caucasus-Countries and in Northern Iran.

Characteristics

The sapwood and the heartwood are not distinguishable. The wood goes from whitely to grey. Rays are wide and well differentiated. The pores are not visible to the naked eye, consequently the growth layers come thru, and especially with the darker late summer wood the annual rings are easy to see. Beech is not very decorative but hard, weighty, pressure-resistant and is characterized by constant and straight grained structure. Beech steams well, becoming a more warm reddish color and is popularly sold as Steamed Beech