Side by side
Beech or hornbeam? How to tell them apart
Fagus sylvatica · Carpinus betulus
You can tell a beech by its leaf with a smooth, wavy edge and its smooth, silver-grey trunk; a hornbeam has sharply double-toothed, pleated leaves and a grey trunk with twisted ridges.
Feel the edge of the leaf. A beech leaf is smooth and wavy, fringed with silky hairs when young; a hornbeam leaf is sharply double-toothed and pleated between 10–15 pairs of veins. Despite the similar look, the hornbeam belongs to the birch family, not the beech family.
| Beech | Hornbeam | |
|---|---|---|
| Leaves | Alternate, oval, 5–10 cm, with an untoothed, wavy edge; young leaves have silky hairs along the margin. 5–9 pairs of parallel veins. | Alternate, oval and pointed, 5–10 cm, sharply double-toothed, with 10–15 pairs of parallel veins between which the leaf is pleated. |
| Flowering | April–May | April–May |
| Fruit | Three-sided beechnuts in a bristly husk that splits open into four valves. | Nutlets on a three-lobed wing, in hanging clusters. |
| Bark | Smooth and silver-grey, even on very old trees. Buds long, pointed and brown, standing away from the twig. | Grey and smooth, with twisting ridges as if there were muscles underneath. Buds pointed and pressed against the twig. |
| Shape and height | Broadleaf tree, 25–40 m | Broadleaf tree, 15–25 m, often as a hedge |
| Site | Sun to shade, any garden soil, normal | Sun to shade, any garden soil, normal |
| Native to Belgium | Yes | Yes |
| Good for bees, butterflies and birds | Yes, for butterflies and birds | Yes, for butterflies and birds |
| Poisonous to people and pets | Not known to be poisonous | Not known to be poisonous |
| Pruning months | June–September and November–February | June–September and November–February |
The best feature in each season
- Spring
- In April–May a young beech leaf is bright green with a silvery fringe of hairs; a young hornbeam leaf is pleated like an accordion from the start.
- Summer
- The fruits are very different: the beech has three-sided nuts in a bristly husk, the hornbeam clusters of nutlets on a three-lobed wing.
- Autumn
- The beech turns golden brown to copper, the hornbeam more yellow. Beechnuts drop from their open husks in September–October.
- Winter
- Look at the buds: long, pointed and cigar-shaped, standing away from the twig on the beech; shorter and pressed against the twig on the hornbeam. As a hedge, both often keep their dry brown leaves until spring.
Where do they grow?
Both are native. The beech forms dark woods on well-drained loam and chalk, such as the Sonian Forest near Brussels; it cannot stand wet feet. The hornbeam grows on almost any soil, including heavy, wet clay, in oak-hornbeam woods, hedgerows and copses.
Which one for your garden?
- For a hedge, both are excellent: dense, native and a nesting place for birds. Choose beech on dry to normal, well-drained soil and hornbeam on heavy or wet soil.
- As a free-standing tree the beech reaches 25–40 m and the hornbeam 15–25 m: both too big for a small garden. Hornbeam tolerates hard pruning even better and regrows from old wood.
Did you know? Hornbeam wood is so hard that it was once used for the cogs of mill wheels.
Read on
- Plant profile: Beech
- Plant profile: Hornbeam
- Beech: when and how to prune
- Hornbeam: when and how to prune
- Identification key: the question that separates them