Flower: Male flowers borne on globose heads, female flowers borne on spikes. Flowers appear just after leaves in the spring.
Fruit: Nuts are irregularly triangular, shiny brown and edible, found in pairs within a woody husk covered with spines, 1/2 to 3/4 inch long. Maturing September to
November.
Twig: Very slender, zigzag, light brown in color. Buds are long (3/4 inch), light brown, and slender, covered with overlapping scales; best described as
"cigar-shaped".
Bark: The bark is smooth, thin, and gray in color, sometimes mottled. Often carved with initials.
Form: A medium to large tree with a rounded crown. Often found in thickets produced by root suckering. Old trees may be surrounded by a ring of young beech.
