Content
- The fruit of the red beech is the slightly venomous beechnuts
- The fruit of the red beech is the beechnuts
- This is how beechnuts look like
- When are beechnuts ripe?
- Propagate red beech from seeds
- Only after 40 years does a beech bear fruit
- The fruits of the European beech are slightly poisonous
- Tips
The fruits of the beech are called beechnuts
The fruit of the red beech is the slightly venomous beechnuts
The fruits of the red beeches are called beechnuts. They are easily poisonous and raw for humans not edible.What special features does the fruit of the European beech have? Worth knowing about the fruits of European beech.
The fruit of the red beech is the beechnuts
Bucheckern are small nutlets, which ripen in a prickly fruit cup. In each fruit stand grow two, occasionally up to four beechnuts.
When ripe, the fruit cups break and the beechnuts fall to the ground. There they are eaten by animals or taken to the winter storage. As a result, squirrels, mice and birds contribute to the propagation of European beech.
Bucheckern contain a lot of oil and are thus a food base for deer, deer and other forest dwellers.
This is how beechnuts look like
When are beechnuts ripe?
Bucheckern mature from September to October. If you want to sow red beech yourself, you can simply pick it up in the forest.
Look for more beechnuts than you need. Not every fruit will actually germinate later.
Propagate red beech from seeds
From beechnuts new red beech can be pulled. It should be noted that the seeds are stratified, so have to go through a longer cold phase. If you do not want to sow the beechnuts directly into the open air in autumn, you can put them in the fridge for a few weeks in a dark container.
Beech stingers are dark germs that only germinate when covered by soil or in the forest of foliage. The fruits are sown in small pots or directly in the field.
Some of the seeds germinate next spring and can be planted when the trees are big enough.
Only after 40 years does a beech bear fruit
Beech trees can only be mated when they are around 40 years old. Before that, they do not form beechnuts suitable for sowing. If a European beech is cut frequently, it does not have any flowers and consequently no beechnuts in autumn.
The fruits of the European beech are slightly poisonous
Beechnuts contain fagin and oxalic acid. Both substances trigger slight intoxication symptoms in humans. This is also the case with horses.
If you want to eat beechnuts, roast them beforehand or heat them in other ways. By heating, the toxins are neutralized and the beechnuts become edible. You will then get a real flavor.
During starvation often beechnuts were on the table. The nutlets are very nutritious due to the high amount of oils.
Tips
Adult red beech do not produce many fruits every year. In some years the ground is covered with beechnuts, while in others hardly any fruit hangs on the tree. This is a natural process and does not mean that the tree is sick.