Beech seeds are generally known as beechnuts. They grow in a protective cover and are ripe from September. Beech trees can be propagated from the nuts. They can even be eaten roasted.
How are beech seeds planted and germinated?
Beech seeds, also known as beechnuts, are sown in early spring after being stratified. Place the seeds in loose soil and cover them with a layer of soil the same thickness as the beechnuts. After a few weeks they begin to germinate and continue their development.
Collecting and preparing beech seeds
- Collecting beech seeds
- Stratifying beechnuts
- sow in pots or soil
- keep moist
- protect from late frosts
Beech trees only bear a lot of fruit very irregularly. In the so-called mast years, countless seeds fall to the ground, while in other years there is hardly a beechnut to be found.
Only beech trees aged 40 to 80 years bear fruit.
Collect the fruits if you want to propagate a beech tree yourself and eat the slightly poisonous nuts. If the seeds are to germinate, they must first be stratified, which means that they must go through a cold phase.
Sowing beech seeds
The right time to sow beech trees is early spring.
To sow beech seeds, prepare small pots or find a suitable spot in the garden.
Place beech seeds in the loose soil. Cover them with a layer of soil as thick as the beechnuts themselves.
The seed germinates after a few weeks
It can take several weeks for the young beech trees to germinate. At first only the cotyledons appear.
It takes some time until the beech seedlings become saplings. They must be protected from frost and drying out until they are finally planted out.
Beechnuts are poisonous
When collecting beechnuts, make sure children and pets do not eat them. The nuts contain the toxin fagin, which causes stomach problems.
If you roast the beech seeds or heat them in another way, the poison is broken down. The beechnuts are then edible and can be ground into flour or used in the kitchen in pieces.
The brown skin around the beechnuts can be removed more easily if you pour hot water over the beech seeds.
Tip
The water test shows whether a beechnut is fertile. Place the beech seeds in a bowl of water. All seeds that sink to the bottom are capable of germinating, while the fruits floating at the top are hollow.
