Don't let guys from Europe try to tell you what a hornbeam looks like.... Their's are very different than ours. Beech hold their leaves in the winter and have very distinctive long pointy buds...very easy to identify typically... Hop Hornbeam also hold their leaves thru winter but they are a little darker brown than beech but are typically found in the similar locations to beech. Hop Hornbeam also has what I describe as shaggy bark. American Hornbeam, on the other hand, have smooth grey bark with what appears to almost be a muscular trunk...and very small leaves. They are nearly always found just above the flood plain of creeks and rivers. Don't be enticed by the big roots on hornbeams...in the long run you are better off finding ones with smaller roots...they will develop nicely in a container, where as the large roots will always look awkward.
