Carpinus Betulus Lucas Hornbeam

Carpinus Betulus Lucas

Carpinus Betulus Lucas, an upright variety of European Hornbeam, makes an excellent hedge or small garden tree for UK gardeners. Its dense growth habit and narrow height are perfectly suited to gardens large and small.

Carpinus Betulus Lucas is notable for its narrow, columnar shape. Its green leaves with a sharp-toothed edge turn a bright yellow in the autumn and remain through the winter, adding some winter interest. In early spring, attractive yellow or green catkins form.  

Fully hardy throughout the UK, Carpinus Betulus Lucas grows fairly quickly to a height of 8-10 metres and spread of 1-3 metres. The European Hornbeam is an extremely long-lived tree, well in excess of 100 years. It will take considerable pruning, developing a dense, twiggy structure that will create an excellent screen if used as a hedging plant. Prune from late summer to mid-winter for best results.

Carpinus Betulus Lucas will grow in any soil type but does not do well in a very acid soil. It does best in a moist but well-drained situation. Once established it is reasonably drought-tolerant. It can be planted in sun, partial or full shade. Able to resist wind, it will do well in either an exposed or sheltered location, and because it is tolerant of pollution, the European Hornbeam is well-suited to use in an urban landscape.

Carpinus Betulus Lucas will serve both decorative and utilitarian purposes in your gardening plans. It is a classic hedging tree, forming a dense, tall screen which will give your property considerable privacy year-round. Since the European Hornbeam is so long-lived a tree, you can depend on it for decades.

Carpinus Betulus Lucas is also well-suited to container planting on a patio or rooftop terrace, grown either in a row to form a screen, or as a specimen plant for its tall, columnar shape. Because of the European Hornbeam’s resistance to pollution, and its narrow form, it is a good choice for an urban roadside planting.

In a small garden Carpinus Betulus Lucas makes an excellent specimen planting where a larger tree would not fit. It is also a good under-storey tree in a woodland garden.

Carpinus Betulus Lucas is often used as a topiary plant. Because of its narrow growth habit and dense structure, it can be trained into an arching roof over a walkway, or shaped into topiaries through regular pruning.

The European Hornbeam has long been a reliable tree in UK gardens, and Carpinus Betulus Lucas is a versatile small variety which can play a number of different roles in your landscape plans.

See also the very popular pleached hornbeam trees or our hornbeam hedging plants.