Propagation
Sow seed when ripe in trays outdoors or in a frame and prick out and pot up when they are large enough to handle. Alternatively stratify fresh seeds for 2 to 3 months during winter then sow in spring.

Semi-hardwood cuttings taken during late summer to autumn with a heel, 100mm (4in) long.
Dislikes being transplanted.


Botanic information
Leaf: The glossy dark green leaves are ovate to broad ovate with a serrated undulating margin and are arranged alternately in 2-ranks along the stems. During autumn the leaves turn butter-yellow before falling.

Flower: The tiny sub-sessile cyathiform male flowers have 5-lobes and are arranged in a spike of 3-5. The tiny female flowers are sessile and globose and are arranged in threes surrounded by an invocular. They appear during early spring but are normally inconspicuous and not a feature of the plant.

Fruit: There are normally three 3-angled nuts (beechnuts) that are inclosed in a hard, blunt-prickly cupule. The tiny nuts are pubescent and take several months to mature.