Fagus sylvatica Midnight Feather - Beech

The Fagus sylvatica Midnight Feather is an astonishing selection of the Purple Beech, particularly elegant with its highly colourful and fine-textured foliage, its slender habit, and moderate growth. Its narrow and dissected leaves, red from spring, become almost black in summer. This tree, which is reminiscent of a Japanese maple, proves to be more tolerant than it and will replace it advantageously in limestone soils. And its modest size allows it to be accommodated in gardens of all sizes.

The beech, in Latin Fagus sylvatica, is an imposing tree of the Fagaceae family. Native to Central Europe to the Caucasus, it is one of the most common species in European forests. The Midnight Feather cultivar (also known as Black Rianne) is a recent Dutch horticultural selection. This tree, of moderately fast growth, has a naturally slender habit. Its trunk is straight, thickening rapidly. It supports a narrow and light crown. At maturity, it should reach about 5m (16 ft 5 in) in height and 2m (6 ft 7 in) in spread. Its foliage is composed of deeply lobed leaves. They appear in spring. Coppery red at bud break, they gradually turn purple and become purplish-black in summer. They are marcescent, meaning they dry up while remaining on the tree until the following spring, when new leaves emerge. The flowers appear almost at the same time as the leaves, from April to May. Barely visible, they are cream-coloured. The male flowers, separate from the female flowers, are grouped in pendant catkins of 40 to 60mm (1.6 to 2.4 in). The female flowers are clustered in groups of 2 to 4 at the ends of the branches. Mature specimens produce fruits called beech nuts, shiny brown and covered with prickles. These fruits, 12 to 18mm (0.5 to 0.7 in) long, are edible in small quantities. Mountain dwellers used to use them to make flour.

The Fagus sylvatica Midnight Feather is a very hardy and truly elegant tree, easy to grow. However, it prefers temperate or mountainous climates and will suffer in climates where summers are too hot and dry. When planted in isolation, it is self-sufficient, constituting a focal point in the garden. You can plant a pretty ground cover of perennial geraniums or periwinkles at its base.