Plant
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Size
30–40 m tallAbout the height of a 12-storey building
Lifespan
Often 150–200 years; ancient specimens can reach 300+
Rarity
Common
M vs F
Monoecious, with separate male and female flowers on the same tree
Habitat
Woodland on well-drained soils, especially chalk and limestone; widely planted in parks and as hedging
Best time
Fresh green leaves in spring; golden-brown canopy in autumn; young trees and hedges often keep dead leaves through winter
Conservation
LC
💡 Did you know?
Beech hedges often keep their brown dead leaves all winter instead of dropping them — a trick called marcescence that helps protect new buds from the cold!
Beech woodland casts such dense shade in summer that very little grows on the woodland floor beneath it, creating the distinctive open, cathedral-like feel of many UK beech woods.
Often confused with
Hornbeam (more toothed leaves
different bark)
Oak (lobed leaves
acorns not beechmast)
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