Fagus sylvatica Linnaeus var. chinensis Franchet.

Trees to 25 m tall. Petiole 0.5-1.5 cm, glabrous; leaf blade ovate, elliptic-ovate, or rarely oblong-ovate, 5-9(-11) cm, abaxially glaucescent and glabrous except for long silky hairs along veins, base broadly cuneate to sometimes rounded or subcordate, margin sinuate, apex shortly acuminate; secondary veins 9-14 on each side of midvein, curving upward, fusing near margin. Peduncle 2-7 cm. Cupule 1.5-1.8 cm; basal bracts greenish, leaflike, glabrous, veined; apical bracts brownish, filiform, hairy. Nuts slightly exserted, apex with 3 small wings. Fl. Apr-May, fr. Aug-Oct.

* Broad-leaved and mixed forest on mountain slopes; 1500-2500 m. Anhui, N Guangxi, S Guizhou, Henan, NW Hubei, Hunan, Shaanxi, E Sichuan, Yunnan, Zhejiang