British forestry it is linked to Irish forestry in so many different ways. Nonetheless other than the fact that these two countries are linked geographically, politically very close together, and historically they have had some very close ties, sometimes very lopsided ties. The modern-day Irish forest is dominated by one tree. That tree is the spruce, from the island of Sitka near Nova Scotia. It is the dominant tree in Irish forestry because it has been planted as such. This is because it is going to grow on Irish soil. It grows almost anywhere. However, one of the more beautiful trees that grows here is the beech.
The beech is next to oak in value and, sawn instead of split and turned, is still a basic material of furniture, although this is not always visible. Much of the wood is imported. The greatest concentration of beechwoods is on the Chiltern Hills in the UK.
The trees thrive as no other on the steep escarpment of the chalk, and their long roots exposed and the shallow soil. But, they reach their most majestic heights on the plateau above, where the chalk is overlaid with deeper soil.
Beech is not exclusively a calcicole. It will grow on many well drained soils. In the northern part of the U.K.’s Epping Forest, it shares the gravelly ground with Hornbeam. At Burnham beeches there is gravel and little chalk. There are many beech plantations all over Britain and Ireland, often far from chalk or limestone. Ancient pollard trees are a feature of old common land in the South East, often at Lane sites where people had the right to fair loppings. There are all pollard beaches in the new Forest, on common land. If you are looking for more information about the trees that grow in the forests of Ireland then Google is your best bet … type in the keyword “Forestry Ireland“.