Beech houses, and log cabins. Beech wood is used for the stocks of military rifles when traditionally preferred woods such as walnut are scarce or unavailable or as a lower-cost alternative. The fruit of the beech tree, known as beechnuts or mast, is found in small burrs that drop from the tree in autumn. They are small, roughly triangular and edible, with a bitter, astringent, or in some cases, mild and nut-like taste. They have a high enough fat content that they can be pressed for edible oil. Fresh from the tree, beech leaves in spring are a fine salad vegetable,
Beech bark disease second type of scale insect, "Xylococcus betulae", which is non-host-specific, is native to North America and causes beech bark disease to a lesser degree than "Cryptococcus fagisuga". There are two fungi common to North America that are important to the beech bark disease process. They are "Neonectria faginata" and "Neonectria ditissima". The primary fungus is "N. faginata", though "N. ditissima" is very important in some areas. These fungi infect the tree through the wounds caused by the beech scale insect and then begin to produce spores. Spores are contained in perithecia, which are red, lemon-shaped fruiting bodies that form in