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Nothofagus betuloides
Magellan's beech is an evergreen tree from the cold, wet forests of southern Chile and Argentina, growing up to about 30 m, though wind-exposed plants stay shrubby. It is grown mainly as a hardy garden or forestry tree in cool, damp climates.
Nothofagus betuloides, Magellan's beech or guindo, is a tree native to southern Patagonia.
In 1769, Sir Joseph Banks collected a specimen of the tree in Tierra del Fuego during Captain Cook's first voyage.
Nothofagus betuloides has been cultivated in Scotland and the Faroe Islands, and has grown well there. Trees planted in the Faroe Islands, which were imported directly from its southernmost distribution in Tierra del Fuego, have turned out to be very hardy.
The wood has a slight lustre and a fine texture with a straight grain. Growth rings are not clearly visible and the heartwood is light pink to reddish-brown in colour. It is used in furniture and construction.
Nothofagus betuloides grows from southern Chile and southern Argentina (40°S) to Tierra del Fuego (56°S). It is found from sea level to 500 m (1,600 ft) above mean sea level. One specimen growing near the southeastern corner of Hornos Island (Cape Horn) was identified in 2019 as the southernmost tree in the world.
Rauli · Antarctic Beech · Mountain Beech · Myrtle Beech · Coigue · Red Beech · Roble Colorado · Nothofagus macrocarpa · Silver Beech · Roble beech · Lenga Beech · Black Beech
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Nothofagus betuloides by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
