Beech cupules. The husk can have a variety of spine- to scale-like appendages, the character of which is, in addition to leaf shape, one of the primary ways beeches are differentiated. The nuts are edible, though bitter (though not nearly as bitter as acorns) with a high tannin content, and are called beechnuts or beechmast. The name of the tree (Latin "fagus", whence the species name; cognate with English "beech") is of Indo-European origin, and played an important role in early debates on the geographical origins of the Indo-European people. Greek φηγός is from the same root, but the word was
Uholka-Shyrokyi Luh primeval beech forest area, were surveyed. Within each plot, all trees with a diameter at breast height (DBH) of 6 cm and more were measured. 97% of all the 6779 trees measured were European beech ("Fagus sylvatica" L.). The oldest beech trees were nearly 500 years. The largest tree was a wych elm ("Ulmus glabra" Huds.) with a DBH of 150 cm, whereas the largest beech tree had a DBH of 140 cm. 10 beech trees per hectare had a DBH of at least 80 cm. The number of living trees consisted of 435 trees per hectare with a basal area of 36.6