Weeping beech measure in length. Flowers appear in the spring and are inconspicuous. The beechnuts sit in a thin spiny husk and are less than 5 cm in diameter. The triangular beech nuts are popular in autumn with birds, mice and squirrels. The green leaves become copper-toned in the fall. In winter the skeleton of the silvery stem with its branches remains attractive. The purple pigment in the leaves acts like a sunscreen to protect its new leaves, which is particularly important for plants that grow at high altitudes where the sun is fierce. The tree is not native to North America
The Weeping Beech The Weeping Beech The Weeping Beech Tree of Flushing is the mother of all European Weeping Beeches in the United States and was designated a living New York City Landmark in 1966. After some years on life support, it was euthanized in 1998. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972. Samuel Parsons, a nurseryman responsible for the planting of Central Park, purchased the cutting that produced this tree while travelling in Belgium in 1846. The tree was on the estate of Baron DeMann in Beersal, Belgium, and transplanted to Flushing in 1847. By 1966 it