The beech tree is said to live about 250 years, but some live to over 400 years. It grows to the height of 20 to 30 m with the circumference of the trunk 2 to 3 m. A single tree bears tens of thousands of beech nuts, but few of them succeed in germinating because most are eaten by animals or do not ripen. The few which germinate grow slowly, and only a small proportion of them survive to become full-grown trees.