I have a chestnut tree that a coworker gave a couple of years ago that
is beginning to bear. She gave me two trees at first, but one died
apparently from drought or stress. I was unaware that there are
several different types of chestnut trees. How do I determine which
kind I have? Also, how do I go about caring for this tree and how do
you get the nuts? Do they fall like pecans or is there another method?

TIA for any and all assistance

Justin

The easiest way would be to post a photo of the leaves and of the nut hull
at alt.binaries.pictures.gardens.

Dave

"Justin" wrote in message
m...
I have a chestnut tree that a coworker gave a couple of years ago that
is beginning to bear. She gave me two trees at first, but one died
apparently from drought or stress. I was unaware that there are
several different types of chestnut trees. How do I determine which
kind I have? Also, how do I go about caring for this tree and how do
you get the nuts? Do they fall like pecans or is there another method?

TIA for any and all assistance

Justin

Justin wrote:

I was unaware that there are
several different types of chestnut trees. How do I determine which
kind I have?

If it has nuts it's a male tree. No nuts equals female.

First, be sure the nuts are edible. You may have a Horse Chestnut, which has
lovely blooms in the spring but produces nuts that are lovely "objets" for
decorating, whether in their spiny chartreuse skin or brown and polished, and
not for human consumption. Kids and the less self-conscious grownups like to
carry them around in their pockets like a worry stone, and I think there are
games you can play with them. I once went over a low wall to pick up a few
lovely specimens in Brno, and almost bumped skulls with a venerable professor
who was also hunting them.
zemedelec

"Justin" wrote in message
m...
I have a chestnut tree that a coworker gave a couple of years ago that
is beginning to bear. She gave me two trees at first, but one died
apparently from drought or stress. I was unaware that there are
several different types of chestnut trees. How do I determine which
kind I have? Also, how do I go about caring for this tree and how do
you get the nuts? Do they fall like pecans or is there another method?

Most will fall out of their spiny casings. If edible they are most likely
Chinese but the American chestnut is coming back.
I like to slit them and cook in microwave. They last less than a month in
the refrigerator but I cook, peel and freeze for later turkey stuffing.
Every year, I have raging battles with deer and squirrels as to who gets
them. They come down over a period of about 2 weeks and I check morning and
evening and sometimes after a brisk wind.
Frank

(Justin) wrote in message om...
I have a chestnut tree that a coworker gave a couple of years ago that
is beginning to bear. She gave me two trees at first, but one died
apparently from drought or stress. I was unaware that there are
several different types of chestnut trees. How do I determine which
kind I have? Also, how do I go about caring for this tree and how do
you get the nuts? Do they fall like pecans or is there another method?

TIA for any and all assistance

Justin

It sure isn't an american chestnut. 99% probability it is of asiatic
descent.
The tree is very carefree and very drought resistant. To get the nuts,
let the
hull fall and soften, then step on it and drag your foot. The hull
will get sheared and you will get the nuts with minimum stinging. To
cook, make a cut across the chestnut and place in oven for 45 mins
until the cut opens. They should be easy to peel. Eat hot.

Borderline Neurotic wrote in
:

Justin wrote:

I was unaware that there are
several different types of chestnut trees. How do I determine which
kind I have?

If it has nuts it's a male tree. No nuts equals female.

huh? i have an American chestnut. AFAIK, there are no other surviving
American chestnuts anywhere around, certainly none of blooming size.
however, my chestnut produces nuts. this year looks to be a *huge* crop
of nuts, in fact. it appears my chestnut has both male & female flowers,
as there are two different looking 'flowers' on it every year, & as i
said, it produces nuts.
i have 2 black walnuts heavily producing nuts & i'm getting a rather
decent crop from my poor blighted butternut (anything one can do for
butternut blight? i admit there are other butternuts in the sugarbush, so
it may be cross pollinated). OTOH, i have a Carpathian walnut that
doesn't do anything but attract bag worms & borers. i suspect it needs a
walnut of the opposite gender nearby to do anything. no big deal. it's a
nice looking tree, except in the fall with the bag worms... and even
then, it looks very cool for Halloween g.
lee

Congratulations on owning an extreme rarity. American Chestnuts still
survive here and there, in extremely scant numbers. Many survive from
original trees, but when the shoots reach maturity, the blight strikes them
down, only to regrow again from the original stump for another 15-20 years.

http://www.utc.edu/Faculty/Hill-Crad...tnutlinks.html


"llama mama" wrote in message
. ..
Borderline Neurotic wrote in
:

Justin wrote:

I was unaware that there are
several different types of chestnut trees. How do I determine which
kind I have?

If it has nuts it's a male tree. No nuts equals female.

huh? i have an American chestnut. AFAIK, there are no other surviving
American chestnuts anywhere around, certainly none of blooming size.
however, my chestnut produces nuts. this year looks to be a *huge* crop
of nuts, in fact. it appears my chestnut has both male & female flowers,
as there are two different looking 'flowers' on it every year, & as i
said, it produces nuts.
i have 2 black walnuts heavily producing nuts & i'm getting a rather
decent crop from my poor blighted butternut (anything one can do for
butternut blight? i admit there are other butternuts in the sugarbush, so
it may be cross pollinated). OTOH, i have a Carpathian walnut that
doesn't do anything but attract bag worms & borers. i suspect it needs a
walnut of the opposite gender nearby to do anything. no big deal. it's a
nice looking tree, except in the fall with the bag worms... and even
then, it looks very cool for Halloween g.
lee

All members of the Chestnut family are monoecious, i.e. each plant has both
male and female reproductive parts. There are no 'male' or 'female'
chestnuts.

--beeky

llama mama wrote:

Borderline Neurotic wrote in
:

Justin wrote:

I was unaware that there are
several different types of chestnut trees. How do I determine which
kind I have?

If it has nuts it's a male tree. No nuts equals female.

huh? i have an American chestnut. AFAIK, there are no other surviving
American chestnuts anywhere around, certainly none of blooming size.
however, my chestnut produces nuts. this year looks to be a *huge* crop
of nuts, in fact. it appears my chestnut has both male & female flowers,
as there are two different looking 'flowers' on it every year, & as i
said, it produces nuts.
i have 2 black walnuts heavily producing nuts & i'm getting a rather
decent crop from my poor blighted butternut (anything one can do for
butternut blight? i admit there are other butternuts in the sugarbush, so
it may be cross pollinated). OTOH, i have a Carpathian walnut that
doesn't do anything but attract bag worms & borers. i suspect it needs a
walnut of the opposite gender nearby to do anything. no big deal. it's a
nice looking tree, except in the fall with the bag worms... and even
then, it looks very cool for Halloween g.
lee