About This Plant
A small to medium tree, American hornbeam is sometimes called "Muscle Wood" for its smooth, gray, muscular-looking bark. It's slow growing and produces green catkins in the spring. It will begin to produce nutlets, which finches and game birds eat, at about 15 years old. Use it as an understory or shade tree.
Plant Details
Environment
Attributes
Benefits
- Wildlife Benefits
Plant Facts
The wood of the American Hormbeam has been used for tool handles, mallet heads, levers and other small wooden objects. | American colonists used its wood to make bowls and dishes, as it it not prone to cracking.
Alternate Names
Blue Beech, Iron Wood, Ironwood, Water Beech, Muscle Wood
