Chestnut
Castanea spp. Once the dominant tree of major portions of the eastern forests. Immense value in the sweet, calorie-rich nut (that’s also high in vitamin C and antioxidants) but also as timber. A blight and fungus in the 19th century knocked most of the wild populations out, quickly. Some remain but mostly as small suckering stands where larger trees will eventually succumb to the disease.
An immense amount of work has been done to bring the chestnut back both for production value - as agroforestry and timer crop - and as a novel, blight resistant wild tree. Most of the work revolves around cross-breeding with disease resistant relatives like the Chinese or Korean chestnut. Left to their own, chestnuts will hybridize readily in the wild.
Chestnuts thrive in sandy, well drained acidic soils and full sun. They will grow in shade but slowly and with less flowering. They seem to grow well or do better in drier years. Once established they can grow quickly, different genetics and hybriods of the various species result in a range of sizes and growth habits but generally speaking, the trees can get up to 50-75 feet tall and about as wide. Larger trees may get up to 100 feet.
Nuts vary in size, shape and flavor again depending on genetics. All plants listed are seedlings from parent cultivars or families, not grafted trees. Parentages and families are described below. A minimum of two trees is recommended for pollination.
dentata x mollisima x crenata: hybrid American chestnut seedlings from open-pollinated nuts collected from select (blight tolerant with American chestnut form and appearance) trees in the Lesesne State Forest chestnut breeding area of Virginia. These cannot be genetically verified (male parent unknown), but likely contain more than 50% American chestnut DNA with the remainder a mix of Chinese and/or Japanese (Korean) chestnut origin. Very likely have improved blight resistance and survive much better than compared to wild-type American chestnut, but still possible to become infected.
Colossal: Castanea sativa x crenata - a European/Korean hybrid. For almost all American commercial chestnut growers the Colossal chestnut tree is the producer of the largest nuts and the most nuts. Fast growing and quick to bear, usually within three years of planting.
Empire Elite: Seedlings come from top-performing trees at Empire Chestnut Company in Carrollton, OH. Known for producing both flavorful and high-quality nuts that are suitable for various uses. Cold hardy to at least Zone 5b, these seedlings are selected for reliable nut production and adaptability in cooler climates. Empire Elite seedlings come from a well-respected source known for their superior chestnut genetics.
Iowa Invincible: From top-performing trees at Red Fern Farm in Wapello, IA, with high-quality nuts that will have some variability in size and flavor characteristics due to genetic diversity. These trees are suitable pollenizers for most other hybrids.
Ohio Outstanding: Seedlings taken from trees at the Wintergreen Chestnut Company in Mantua, OH and optimized through selective breeding to produce culinary nuts with the highest possible flavor and nutrition. Highly blight resistant and cold hardy to at least Zone 5b. Wintergreen’s genetic diversity includes genes from American, Chinese, European, and Japanese chestnuts.
Sold as bare root trees 12-36” tall.
Castanea spp. Once the dominant tree of major portions of the eastern forests. Immense value in the sweet, calorie-rich nut (that’s also high in vitamin C and antioxidants) but also as timber. A blight and fungus in the 19th century knocked most of the wild populations out, quickly. Some remain but mostly as small suckering stands where larger trees will eventually succumb to the disease.
An immense amount of work has been done to bring the chestnut back both for production value - as agroforestry and timer crop - and as a novel, blight resistant wild tree. Most of the work revolves around cross-breeding with disease resistant relatives like the Chinese or Korean chestnut. Left to their own, chestnuts will hybridize readily in the wild.
Chestnuts thrive in sandy, well drained acidic soils and full sun. They will grow in shade but slowly and with less flowering. They seem to grow well or do better in drier years. Once established they can grow quickly, different genetics and hybriods of the various species result in a range of sizes and growth habits but generally speaking, the trees can get up to 50-75 feet tall and about as wide. Larger trees may get up to 100 feet.
Nuts vary in size, shape and flavor again depending on genetics. All plants listed are seedlings from parent cultivars or families, not grafted trees. Parentages and families are described below. A minimum of two trees is recommended for pollination.
dentata x mollisima x crenata: hybrid American chestnut seedlings from open-pollinated nuts collected from select (blight tolerant with American chestnut form and appearance) trees in the Lesesne State Forest chestnut breeding area of Virginia. These cannot be genetically verified (male parent unknown), but likely contain more than 50% American chestnut DNA with the remainder a mix of Chinese and/or Japanese (Korean) chestnut origin. Very likely have improved blight resistance and survive much better than compared to wild-type American chestnut, but still possible to become infected.
Colossal: Castanea sativa x crenata - a European/Korean hybrid. For almost all American commercial chestnut growers the Colossal chestnut tree is the producer of the largest nuts and the most nuts. Fast growing and quick to bear, usually within three years of planting.
Empire Elite: Seedlings come from top-performing trees at Empire Chestnut Company in Carrollton, OH. Known for producing both flavorful and high-quality nuts that are suitable for various uses. Cold hardy to at least Zone 5b, these seedlings are selected for reliable nut production and adaptability in cooler climates. Empire Elite seedlings come from a well-respected source known for their superior chestnut genetics.
Iowa Invincible: From top-performing trees at Red Fern Farm in Wapello, IA, with high-quality nuts that will have some variability in size and flavor characteristics due to genetic diversity. These trees are suitable pollenizers for most other hybrids.
Ohio Outstanding: Seedlings taken from trees at the Wintergreen Chestnut Company in Mantua, OH and optimized through selective breeding to produce culinary nuts with the highest possible flavor and nutrition. Highly blight resistant and cold hardy to at least Zone 5b. Wintergreen’s genetic diversity includes genes from American, Chinese, European, and Japanese chestnuts.
Sold as bare root trees 12-36” tall.
Castanea spp. Once the dominant tree of major portions of the eastern forests. Immense value in the sweet, calorie-rich nut (that’s also high in vitamin C and antioxidants) but also as timber. A blight and fungus in the 19th century knocked most of the wild populations out, quickly. Some remain but mostly as small suckering stands where larger trees will eventually succumb to the disease.
An immense amount of work has been done to bring the chestnut back both for production value - as agroforestry and timer crop - and as a novel, blight resistant wild tree. Most of the work revolves around cross-breeding with disease resistant relatives like the Chinese or Korean chestnut. Left to their own, chestnuts will hybridize readily in the wild.
Chestnuts thrive in sandy, well drained acidic soils and full sun. They will grow in shade but slowly and with less flowering. They seem to grow well or do better in drier years. Once established they can grow quickly, different genetics and hybriods of the various species result in a range of sizes and growth habits but generally speaking, the trees can get up to 50-75 feet tall and about as wide. Larger trees may get up to 100 feet.
Nuts vary in size, shape and flavor again depending on genetics. All plants listed are seedlings from parent cultivars or families, not grafted trees. Parentages and families are described below. A minimum of two trees is recommended for pollination.
dentata x mollisima x crenata: hybrid American chestnut seedlings from open-pollinated nuts collected from select (blight tolerant with American chestnut form and appearance) trees in the Lesesne State Forest chestnut breeding area of Virginia. These cannot be genetically verified (male parent unknown), but likely contain more than 50% American chestnut DNA with the remainder a mix of Chinese and/or Japanese (Korean) chestnut origin. Very likely have improved blight resistance and survive much better than compared to wild-type American chestnut, but still possible to become infected.
Colossal: Castanea sativa x crenata - a European/Korean hybrid. For almost all American commercial chestnut growers the Colossal chestnut tree is the producer of the largest nuts and the most nuts. Fast growing and quick to bear, usually within three years of planting.
Empire Elite: Seedlings come from top-performing trees at Empire Chestnut Company in Carrollton, OH. Known for producing both flavorful and high-quality nuts that are suitable for various uses. Cold hardy to at least Zone 5b, these seedlings are selected for reliable nut production and adaptability in cooler climates. Empire Elite seedlings come from a well-respected source known for their superior chestnut genetics.
Iowa Invincible: From top-performing trees at Red Fern Farm in Wapello, IA, with high-quality nuts that will have some variability in size and flavor characteristics due to genetic diversity. These trees are suitable pollenizers for most other hybrids.
Ohio Outstanding: Seedlings taken from trees at the Wintergreen Chestnut Company in Mantua, OH and optimized through selective breeding to produce culinary nuts with the highest possible flavor and nutrition. Highly blight resistant and cold hardy to at least Zone 5b. Wintergreen’s genetic diversity includes genes from American, Chinese, European, and Japanese chestnuts.
Sold as bare root trees 12-36” tall.