Royal British Estate European Hornbeam

Hornbeam (Carpinus betulus) is a deciduous broadleaf tree native to the southern of the UK, but widely planted elsewhere. The name hornbeam comes from the hardness of its timber - ‘horn’ means ‘hard’ and ‘beam’ was the name for a tree in old English. The European Hornbeam is widely cultivated as an ornamental tree, for planting in gardens and parks in the UK, and has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

The wood of the Hornbeam is a pale creamy white with a flecked grain. It is extremely hard and strong, and so is mainly used for furniture and flooring. Historic uses for the wood included ox-yokes, butchers' chopping blocks and cogs for windmills and water mills. A tonic made from hornbeam is said to relieve tiredness and exhaustion, and in the past its leaves were used to stop bleeding and heal wounds.

All blanks come from the trimmings of the actual trees growing in the gardens of the Queen of England's British Estate.

Imported from England.