chestnut tree Tree once thrived in the bulk of the woods in eastern North America .
They can be hulk nuance Tree , flowering shrub , or tiny food - produce Tree , depending on the variety you opt .
Before you engraft a chestnut tree Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree , there are a few factors you need to keep in nous . Of course , your USDA Hardiness Zone will dictate which mixed bag you’re able to grow . Size will also be a big factor .
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On top of that , whilechestnuts are n’t particularly prone to pests , there are a fewdiseasesthat can be a huge problem , admit the infamous blight .
If blight is a problem in your area , you ’ll want to focus on choosing from a few resistant mintage .
Ourguide to growing chestnutsdiscusses how to crop species in theCastaneagenus in your landscape painting .
In this guide , we ’ll talk about all the most excellent cultivar , hybrid , and species for home raiser . Here ’s the lineup :
11 Favorite Chestnut Varieties
chestnut are an important part of human chronicle , seem in fossil records and traditional knowledge operate back C .
Within theCastaneagenus there are 13 mintage , four of which are usually cultivated for food for thought and wood , along with many hybrids .
loan-blend can be created through intentional facts of life or they can happen naturally . In fact , some of the good hybrid presently in culture were naturally - occurring .
There are over 1300 cultivars and new ones popping up all the clip . For the most part , chestnuts are hardy in USDA Hardiness Zones 5 to 9 , but we ’ll point out where this is n’t the subject .
Note that you wo n’t see sawbuck chestnuts ( Aesculus hippocastanum ) on this list . These tree diagram are n’t even unaired relatives of those in theCastaneagenus .
Buckeyes , as they are also known , are in the litchee and soapnut kin , Sapindaceae , and while the spiky capsule depend similar to those of chestnuts , they are n’t edible .
Chestnuts in theCastaneagenus are monoecious , which means that the male generative part ( the catkins ) and the distaff share ( flowers ) seem on the same tree .
This intend that the pollen from a single specimen can cross-pollinate itself and also other trees in the neighbourhood . So in possibility , you only take one tree to produce nuts .
However , it often happens that at the time the pollen is being produced , the flowers on the same tree are not yet mature enough to be pollinated . For this reason , many cultivator often keep two different trees , to facilitate pollenation of both .
to boot , some cultivars are not self - fertile , so it is a good idea to check before purchase .
Some form of chestnut require a certain number of pall hours between 32 and 45 ° F in gild to narrate the tree diagram to originate give rise the bud that will finally become the fruit .
Make note of the required shivering hours of the variety you ’re consider and make trusted that your country has enough chill hours for yield .
Let ’s start our journey by discourse the American species and one of the saddest and most annihilative ecological disasters in North American history .
1. American
Chestnuts have grow in North America for over 50 million years andC. dentatawas once one of the rife species in the forests from Maine to Florida .
They can grow over 100 foot tall with trunks that measure 12 invertebrate foot or more in diameter .
Wildlife as varied as bear , cervid , squirrels , turkeys , and the now extinct woodrat rely on them for food and home ground .
As humans fan out across their range , they start to rely on the nuts , as well . afterwards , with the reaching of Europeans , the woods became important and was used to make furniture and construction structures .
And then chestnut blight arrived .
due to the fungusCryphonectria parasitica , the disease arrive in New York City from Japan in 1904 and quickly killed almost all of the fantastic chestnut tree trees in easterly North America .
By the 1950s , over 30 million land of tree had been completely wipe out by the disease , which girdles the trunk at its pedestal .
It ’s laborious to imagine , but the eastern forests used to look vastly dissimilar just a few generations ago than they do today . It was one of the bad ecologic catastrophe in North American story .
The chestnut tree solid food diligence was also wiped out and today , many North Americans do n’t acknowledge what sassy American chestnuts taste like .
you may buy import type , which have a unlike flavor from American 1 , and rarely , you might find topically - grown fruit from Modern American hybrids or one of the few surviving trees .
That ’s correct . A few subsist tree outlast the blight in their original range and there are some growing outdoors of their original chain of mountains , so all is n’t recede for the American coinage .
scientist are working to multiply genetically qualify trees that are resistant to the disease to be institute in the wild to repopulate the decimated areas .
There is also employment to cross - breed Chinese species with American species to produce a resistant loanblend that is genetically in the main American but with the blight opposition of the Formosan metal money . fourth dimension will tell what becomes of these efforts .
Since the blight kills the automobile trunk and canopy but not the source , some century - old etymon still survive and on a regular basis beam up shoot .
But these shoot of necessity become infected with the disease and the trunk become girdled before they attain matureness .
Some gardeners plant the species and enjoy it for a few years knowing that it will eventually succumb to the disease .
American chestnuts produce eight - column inch catkins in white or cream , and the nuts are small , with about 75 to150 bollock per lbf. , but intensely flavorful , sweet , and light to strip .
The tree are implausibly productive by the time they attain eight years old or so , but will bring about a smaller yield before that . They involve about 300 quiver hours to produce .
Many mass consider American nuts to be the best taste , which take a shit it even more of a pity that they are so difficult to find .
American Chestnut ( Castaneadentata )
you could buy this speciesat Nature Hills Nursery .
Just be aware that these trees are n’t immune to blight and you launch the hazard of losing yours , especially if you live in eastern North America .
If your tree does show resistance , be sure to let your local extension know . They might want to add the tree to their fosterage platform .
2. American Hybrids
Wild chestnut trees hybridize with one another , and there are several natural hybrids that have been bring into refinement . The chinknut , C.×neglecta , is one example .
But humans have assist the process along , as well . flora breeders have crossed numerous metal money with the goal of produce a hybrid that combines the best traits of our favorite tree diagram .
Sometimes you will see a plant listed as a generic “ intercrossed ” chestnut . These are usually a cross between American ( C. dentata ) and Chinese ( C. mollissima ) tree diagram .
Many local stock breeder and universities grow their own American / Taiwanese hybrids , so there is n’t a set standard across the board . Some will rise up to 100 metrical foot magniloquent , while others stick around under 30 foot .
Some produce heaps of small nuts , with around 100 nuts per British pound sterling and others have few but big fruits , up to 20 per pound . Depending on the crossbreed , the catkins may be clean or yellow and up to nine inches long .
American Hybrid Chestnut
Be sure to say the grower ’s verbal description to see the characteristics of the tree you are purchasing . you may take over the plants need about 300 chill 60 minutes but this can vary between hybrid .
For example , Nature Hills Nurseryhas a cross that farm up to 60 feet tall .
3. Belle Epine
‘ Belle Epine ’ is democratic as a pollinator and resists root rot so it can tolerate laboured soil than most other chestnuts .
This European ( C. sativa ) cultivar fare from France and the junkie ripen afterward in the season than most other chestnut .
Not only does it get flavorful nut , but it ’s part self - fat . The crank are medium to large in size , at 22 per pound and easy to peel .
If you like throw a show pipe bowl of ballock in your kitchen or as a centerpiece , the glossy , mahogany peel is extremely attractive .
The catkins are graciously arching with ointment - colour bloom , and the tree can grow up to 100 feet magniloquent .
‘ Belle Epine ’ starts grow dear sized yields in just three geezerhood or so and requires about 400 shiver hours .
4. Chinese
Formosan chestnut ( C. mollissima ) hail from eastern Asia , though they ’ve been in cultivation for so long that it ’s not certain where they originated .
We know they ’ve been grown for at least 6,000 years . Today , the chestnut tree industry in China is thriving , and the country is one of the largest producers and consumers of the testicle .
A act more petite than American and European chestnuts , these Tree spring up to about 40 foot tall , though they can pass on up to 65 fundament in optimal term .
The leaves are oval and deep , with a loose underside thanks to the white hairs that extend the surface . It ’s this hairy undersurface that assist us differentiate Chinese eccentric from American and European .
The bollock are flavourful , intermediate to declamatory in size of it , with 30 to 50 nuts per pound , depend on the cultivar . They are n’t quite as sweet and nipping as American types , but they ’re delicious in a slimly different agency .
The predilection can vary slightly from cultivar to cultivar , so be certain to read up on the flavor if you ’re looking for a specific visibility . They ’re generally easygoing to peel with yellow nutmeat inside .
This species does n’t ask any chill hours so it ’s perfect for those in more temperate climates .
The long yellow and emollient - colored ament that look in the spring are particularly attractive , though the flowers do n’t exactly have the best fragrancy . Some people like it , but others think it ’s afoul . But the floral video display is impressive and much sporty than other species .
C. mollissimaalso incline to be more adaptable than many other species . You ’ll find these tree diagram thriving in anything from sandy to clay soil .
This mintage is resistant to chestnut blight . The tree diagram are n’t immune , but when they narrow the disease , the symptoms are minimal if there are any at all .
That say , resistance varies , and you might detect one tree diagram becomes heavily diagnostic , while others never show any signs at all . The cultivar ‘ Hart Crane ’ lean to be susceptible while ‘ William Le Baron Jenny ’ is seldom tumultuous , for example .
For the most part , if a tree is infected , it might mislay a tree branch or something , but not much else will happen .
There are many excellent improved cultivars available on the market . ‘ Beth ’ has nuts with an excellent flavor and ‘ Bouche de Betizac ’ is heating plant tolerant and gall wasp resistant .
‘ Benton Harbor ’ is high - yielding and extremely big . ‘ Crane ’ give you average - sized , tasty en that stash away well . ‘ Hong Kong ’ has extremely fresh nuts and is vigorous .
Chinese Chestnut ( Castaneamollissima )
Hardy in zone 4 to 9 , these are excellent trees if you want to reap tasty chestnuts but do n’t desire to worry about blight too much .
Fast Growing Trees carriesspecies tree in single or four packs in a variety of sizes .
These Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree are popular in the sou'-east , but they can turn just about anywhere in the US and southerly Canada .
5. Colossal
‘ Colossal ’ is a wide grow cross betweenC. sativaandC. crenatathat produces monolithic nuts , with just 11 to 15 per pound and up to 50 British pound sterling per Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree .
The nuts do n’t store well , so you ’ll require to eat them within a few months . The trees get going produce when unseasoned , just three or four years sure-enough . At maturity , they reach up to 40 feet tall .
This is the cultivar that commercial growers are focus on in western North America . You ’ll recover it in most commercial chestnut woodlet along the Pacific coast .
It originate in the late 1800s in Nevada City , California , where it was spawn by grower Benjamin Tonella . The yellow catkins can develop up to eight inches prospicient and are enjoyably fragrant .
While ‘ Colossal ’ is moderately susceptible to blight , it is far more able to withstand the disease than the American species .
Its other drawback is that the wood can be weak and prone to breakage when laden with nuts , peculiarly in blowy weather .
‘ Colossal ’ chestnut tree
But its gamy proceeds and flavorful nuts make it well worth having around . It expect about 300 chill time of day .
need one?Find yours at Nature Hills Nursery .
6. Dunstan Hybrids
After the bulk of American plants were killed during the blight , horticulturalists started to take stock of the remaining trees .
One agriculturist found a bright specimen that add its genetics to many modernistic hybrids and cultivars . Today , many of the survive American chestnuts are breed from Dunstan tree .
The original Dunstan tree was a undivided specimen that survived in a woodlet of dying or dead blighted chestnuts .
Dr. Robert Dunstan , a works stock breeder and appendage of the Northern Nut Growers Association , tried to taint the tree with the spore of the fungi that stimulate the disease and it continued to stand unassailable .
So he grafted scions pick out from the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree onto healthy rootstock and crabby - pollinated that tree diagram with a few different Chinese cultivars growing nearby . These were ‘ Kuling , ’ ‘ Meiling , ’ and ‘ Nanking . ’
By 1962 , a few of the cross - pollinate seedlings started putting out fruit and he scotch these back with the American parent .
The result trees have been in finish since the 1970s and can be purchased across the US . While they are n’t on the button like the American species , they are close .
Dunstan Chestnut
Dunstan crossbreed bring forth huge nuts , with just 15 to 35 ball per lb and they start appear just a few years after you plant the tree .
The six - in catkins are white or skim in coloring , and the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree require about 300 chill minute .
you may find Dunstan chestnutsavailable at Nature Hills Nursery .
Popular Dunstan cultivars admit ‘ Skookum , ’ ‘ Lyeroka , ’ and ‘ Myoka . ’
7. Dwarf
American chinquapin or dwarf chestnut ( C. pumila ) produces fruit , but it ’s not the one you ’d choose if you need high yields simply because the en are so modest .
As such , some mass choose to get this species as an ornamental tree or bush that just happens to bring out a bit of nutrient . It requires no frisson hour .
While it can spring up up to about 25 foundation marvellous , most detain half that size .
As an ornamental , it ’s a charmer , with cerise and grayish - brown , scaly bark . The lanceolate farewell are immature on top and paler on the bottom with light-headed hairs .
In the early summer , six - column inch catkin of sensationalistic and white blossoms come out .
When you harvest the yield , you ’re in for a dainty . They ’re even better than their close relative the American chestnut .
The little testis are sweeter and every bit as flavorful – and on a unspoiled year you could reap up to 500 pounds from a individual Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree .
The plant are repellent to plague and while they can be infected , most recuperate without any permanent impairment . When taint , you ’ll in all probability see reduced growth and yields . There are a few cultivar out there , including ‘ Fuller ’ and ‘ Rush . ’
8. European
The European or Spanish chestnut tree ( C. sativa ) is autochthonal to the Caucasus region surrounding the Black Sea in modern Armenia , Azerbaijan , Georgia , Russia , and Turkey .
The tree was incredibly important in the region , appearing in ancient Greek and Roman texts . Romans grafted the trees to improve both the wood and the fruits .
As Romans moved throughout Europe , they brought chestnut tree with them and now the trees can be found from the tip of Northern Scotland to the toe of Italy .
In 1773 , it was imported to the US by Thomas Jefferson . Today , Italy is the elementary chestnut tree exporter in Europe and they have a small front in North America .
There are two main types of European chestnuts .
The first ismarroni , which grow large , sweet , flavourful nuts – about 15 per pound – that are light to peel .
Marroni chestnut can trace their lineage back to the cultivar ‘ Marrone Fiorentino ’ which was bred in northern Italy in the 1500s .
The second iscastagna , which are smaller , less flavorful , and harder to peel . This is used as a broad terminus to describe the inferior European cultivar bred in Italy .
Both have white nutmeat and can produce up to 100 feet tall with monumental trunks up to seven feet in diameter . The catkins are yellowish green and about six inches long , count on the cultivar .
While these trees are less unnatural by chestnut blight than American species , they are still susceptible . However , the disease is less destructive in Europe , so the growing manufacture has been much less impacted there .
There are many cultivars that are improved versions of the species . ‘ Borra ’ is a favorite for those want particularly large , flavorful Nut .
‘ Fowler ’ has highly high - quality fruits that are light to peel . ‘ Silverleaf ’ has large , angelical Nut .
calculate on the cultivar , they require between 250 and 400 chill hours .
9. Japanese
The Nipponese or Korean chestnut ( C. crenata ) has narrower leaves and is smaller than the European and American mintage .
When mature , it only reach about 50 feet marvelous at most , though it ’s usually closer to 30 feet tall .
It ’s super repellent to blight , Phytophthora , and ink disease , so it ’s a democratic specie to interbreed with the more disease - susceptible American trees .
The nuts themselves lack the deep flavor of European and American metal money and are average in size .
They are exchangeable to Chinese chestnuts , producing about 35 to 50 per Irish pound , and with a like flavour that is a bit milder and less sweet .
That ’s why the Nipponese species is n’t typically spring up for the nut alone but as an ornamental with a incentive of ball in the fall . The narrow , eight - inch white catkins grow in an good style and step by step arc downwards .
It was introduce to the US in 1876 by Thomas Hogg and George Rogers Hall . Both horticulturalists spent time in Japan and independently sent back specimens that they found during their travels .
There are many fantabulous cultivars out there include ‘ Ginyose ’ and ‘ Tsukuba , ’ which are both insubordinate to gall WASP and bring forth large , flavorful fruit .
Japanese chestnut are hardy in Zones 4 to 8 and require about 400 chill hours .
10. Okei
‘ Okei ’ is an excellent pollinator that produces massive fruit at 15 per pound . They can be even bigger than those of ‘ Colossal . ’
It ’s a fast grower and starts producing at a new age , but it prefers a warm mood to give rise best . The long - lasting , cream colored catkins grow up to eight inches long .
In coolheaded climates , ‘ Okei ’ do a gorgeous ornamental , but the product will be immensely reduced . Since it ’s not a heavy surrenderer to get down with , that could intend a pretty paltry harvest . It ’s adequate to of growing in Zones 4 to 8 .
‘ Okie , ’ as it is sometimes spelled , was developed by combining a Nipponese and European ‘ Silverleaf ’ cultivar at the University of California Davis . It is often used as a companion to pollinate ‘ Colossal . ’
find out out , this cultivar does n’t bring out well in swampy , crocked climates , and need about 350 chill hours .
11. Sleeping Giant
‘ catch some Z’s colossus ’ is an American , Chinese , and Japanese cross that produces large nuts with about 40 per pound . It is an super vigorous Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree , with eight - column inch emollient colored catkin .
It ’s also blight - resistant . breed by the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station in 1937 , the flower ripen afterward in natural spring than other cultivars , which means they egress after the late frosts that can plague some areas . The nuts mature mid - season .
In addition to the excellent yield , it make a stellar ornamental . It maturate about 60 groundwork marvellous with gorgeous slick , serrated leave , and requires about 300 chill hours .
Beautiful and Delicious
When you have a chestnut tree diagram in your K , it ’s the ultimate two - for - one – a beautiful ornamental with the bonus of delicious nuts .
Blight has made growing chestnuts a challenge , but we have selection now if you dream of pee it happen .
And formore entropy about acquire nut Tree in your landscape painting , check out these templet next :
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Kristine Lofgren
