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.
Stachys sylvatica Stachys sylvatica Stachys sylvatica, commonly known as hedge woundwort, whitespot, or sometimes as hedge nettle, is a perennial herb growing to 80 cm tall in woodland and unmanaged grassland. In temperate zones of the northern hemisphere it flowers in July and August. The flowers are purple. The leaves, when crushed or bruised, give off an unpleasant fetid smell. Hedge woundwort is an erect perennial plant with slender underground runners and grows to a height of about . The stem branches occasionally and is squarish and hairy, with glandular hairs on the upper part of the plant. The nodes are widely