A few are carried by rodents but dispersal is limited. Beech seeds germinate from early spring to early summer. Chilling is required to break dormancy. Germination is good on mineral soil or leafy litter, but poor on excessively wet sites. Sprouts may develop on the trunk of a tree immediately below a wound and from the top of stumps.
Adventitious buds develop in callus tissue of the cambial layers of stumps.
Sprouts can also develop from the exposure of the roots to air or elevated temperatures. Beech is found at low elevations in the North and relatively high elevations in the South. Local soil and climatic factors probably determine whether beech grows at the higher elevations. It is seldom found on limestone soils except in the western edge of its range. American beech is a climax species that grows slowly underneath an overstory of conifers or hardwoods.