I started this series with the observation that many of our gardens in the northern hemisphere are now sepia tinted (if not covered in snow). While it's true that the neutral tones aren't as exciting as the vivid reds, oranges and purples, they can have quite pleasing subtle variations in tone and tint that add a richness, especially when viewed closely or with the sun backlighting them.
The American Beech is truly a noble tree. This is not a tree for the small garden, since it can get to be one hundred feet (30.48m) tall with about half that spread. But if you have the space and can offer it moist, well-drained acid soil in full sun or light shade and good air (it won't tolerate city conditions); do consider it. Native to much of the eastern United States - rated hardy from USDA zones 3 to 9 - its three cornered nuts are an important food source for many mammals and birds. I love the smooth, silvery-gray bark and the lovely long, pointed buds which, with its habit of hanging on to its leaves after most other trees have dropped theirs, makes it easy to spot in the woods. The leaves fade from the coppery brown to an almost pinkish tan before they finally are blown off the trees in very late winter. I know there has to be a nut-bearing tree somewhere near my USDA zone 7 garden, because there are several babies in the woods and one very large specimen much too close to the house. I've not seen any sign of nuts on the large tree, however.
Beech are shallow rooted trees with long, gracefully drooping branches casting a dense shade that makes growing anything under them, other than moss, difficult. Their form, bark and coppery halo of leaves in fall make them well worth growing; besides...moss is nice! One interesting factoid: They are often the choice of the love-struck for carving the initials of their beloved, because the bark doesn't heal, so the initials remain for the life of the tree.
Giant Solomon's Seal is one of the plants that glows when the sun strokes its fading foliage. Well, actually both the species of Polygonatum that I've got fade to the same golden brown. This genus is a must for all shade gardens from USDA zones 4-9 (although they do not care for the extreme heat and humidity of the deep south). I went on at length about these plants in my article More Plants in the Circle Garden, in case you missed that one.
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