Fagus orientalis tree's natural range extends from southeastern Bulgaria's Strandja mountain, through northwest Turkey, and east to the Caucasus Mountains in Georgia and Russia, to the Alborz Mountains in Iran. Its habitat is restricted to mountain forests, at of altitude. The Oriental beech has colonized even lower altitudes in the Strandja mountain of Bulgaria as low as above sea-level, due to the unique local micro-climate, where it forms typical "Fagus orientalis"−"Rhododendron ponticum" forests as well as with other evergreen shrubs. The wood of "Fagus orientalis" is heavy, hard, strong and highly resistant to shock. These features makes it suitable for steam bending.
Stillingia sylvatica Stillingia sylvatica Stillingia sylvatica, known as queen's-delight or queen's delight, is a species of flowering plant in the family Euphorbiaceae. It was described in 1767. It is endemic to the south-central and southeastern United States, growing in sandy areas such as sandhills and pine flatwoods. It is an herb or subshrub averaging in height. It has alternate, ovate leaves with short petioles, reaching in length and in width. The leaf margins are serrulate to crenulate with incurved teeth. Each crowded inflorescence has four to seven staminate flowers and three to four pistillate flowers. Queen's delight flowers between March and June,