European Beech 'Riversii' is a cultivar with large, glossy purple leaves that turn striking copper in the fall. This cultivar is the most purple of all the beeches and even retains its purple color into the summer. It makes a great shade tree, screen, or a specimen but be sure to have room for its mature size of 50 feet - 60 feet tall and 40 feet -50 feet wide. Plant in the full sun to partial shade in well-drained soils. It is not picky about soil pH or soil type growing in sand, clay or loam but it will not tolerate wet, poorly drained soils and sometimes struggles in urban environments. Very little pruning is needed to maintain an attractive shape in the is densely crowned tree. Heat and drought can be very hard on this tree. Its beautiful smooth gray barks makes for interest in the winter landscape. This tree does tolerate browsing by deer. Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: No serious problems. Aphids, Japanese beetles, and caterpillars can be insect pests. Trees under stress can be attacked by borers or beech scale. Cankers, powdery mildew, and beach bark diseases are occasional diseases. More information on Fagus sylvatica .
Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds
whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.
No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.
Also noted by NC State
Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell
apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day) | Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
Soil texture
Clay; High Organic Matter; Loam (Silt); Sand
Soil pH
Acid (<6.0); Alkaline (>8.0); Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Moist
NC region
Mountains; Piedmont
Growth rate
Slow
Maintenance
Low
Canopy layer
2 - Understory
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Dense
Foliage
Deciduous
Leaf color
Green; Purple/Lavender
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf shape
Elliptical
Leaf margin
Crenate; Entire
Leaf feel
Glossy
Leaf value
Showy
Leaf size
3-6 inches long
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
5" long glossy leaves with wavy mostly smooth-margined that start out deep purple in the spring, turn green-purple in the summer and copper orange in the fall. The veins are prominent and parallel.
Fall color
Brown/Copper; Orange
Flower color
Gold/Yellow; Green; Insignificant
Flower form
Insignificant; Spike
Flower detail
Monecious, yellow-green flowers bloom from April-May. Female flowers are short spikes, male flowers are long-stemmed drooping round clusters.
Bloom time
Spring
Fruit type
Nut
Fruit value
Edible; Showy
Fruit detail
Triangular nuts surrounded by spiny bracts. Nuts are edible.
Bark color
Light Gray
Bark detail
Smooth pale gray bark makes for excellent winter interest.
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Unknown
Food & Medicine
Edible parts
Fruit
Harvest time
Fall
Fruit type
Nut
Landscape Use
Landscape location
Lawn; Woodland
Landscape theme
Cottage Garden; Winter Garden
Design feature
Screen/Privacy; Shade Tree; Specimen
Garden tags
#showy leaves #low maintenance #interesting bark #specimen #deciduous tree #deer resistant #shade tree #glossy leaves #winter interest #purple leaves #fall color orange #year-round interest #screen