Master Gardeners: Chestnut reflections

Published 4:35 pm Tuesday, December 13, 2022

Signs of fall are finally here that will soon give way to the Christmas holidays and memories of family traditions past and present.

My husband Jim has always loved roasting chestnuts around the holidays. He grew up in McKeesport, Pennsylvania and his father loved roasting chestnuts around Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. During Jim’s childhood this tradition marked an annual, unofficial, count-down to Christmas and one I would carry forward into our present, shared, adult life. This tradition however, depended on finding chestnuts for sale. Given their scarcity, finding them felt like a scavenger hunt.

This scarcity is due to the 1904 chestnut blight fungus (Cryphonectria parasitica) which killed off most American chestnut trees (Castanea dentata). The blight lasted well into the 1960’s when a Dr. Dunstan crossed American and Chinese parent trees, resulting with second generation hybrid tree’s that were fungus resistant. After 1984 these hybrid trees, from Dr. Dunstan’s 2nd generation grafted trees, are what is growing in states from southern New England, west to southern Michigan, and south to north Florida and east Texas.

After purchasing our 50-acre ranch property here in Chapel Hill, we began researching various farming options. At the time, we were living in Houston and “weekenders” in Tyler. This situation did not allow for us to raise cattle or any other type of livestock. My husband had a friend at work who was growing pecan trees in Louisiana and suggested we look at starting a pecan orchard because the growing conditions were similar, and the soil was a nice sandy loam.

In February of 2014, we went shopping for Pecan trees at the Bob Well’s Nursery in Lindale. There we stumbled upon a row of chestnut trees. The prospect of growing delicious chestnuts intrigued us both and that day we bought 10 three-to-four-foot trees in containers. Five American and five Chinese chestnut trees. During that year we had two American Chestnut trees die and then replanted the second year with Dunston’s.

We celebrated our first chestnut harvest of 8-pounds in October of 2019 and 9-pounds in September of 2020. By September of 2021, the harvest increased to 85-pounds and most, if not all, come from just five trees. Over the same period, similar aged pecan trees produced no nuts.

When we compare our pecan trees and our chestnut trees hands down the Chestnut trees have outperformed and been much easier to grow. The chestnut trees are faster growing, are more drought resistant, less attractive to leaf eating insects, and their root systems are much less desirable to pesky gophers. This has resulted in a lower mortality rate for chestnut trees.

As we look ahead to larger harvests, our attention turns toward preserving these tasty nuts for others to enjoy. Our experience thus far shows the nuts ripen and fall in the mid to late September period, well ahead of the holiday season when thoughts turn toward traditions past and present.

Signs of fall are finally here that will soon give way to the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays and memories of family traditions past and present.

My husband Jim has always loved roasting Chestnuts around the holidays. He grew up in McKeesport, Pennsylvania and his father loved roasting chestnuts around Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays. During Jim’s childhood this tradition marked an annual, unofficial, count-down to Christmas and one I would carry forward into our present, shared, adult life. This tradition however, depended on finding chestnuts for sale. Given their scarcity, finding them felt like a scavenger hunt.

This scarcity is due to the 1904 Chestnut blight fungus (Cryphonectria parasitica) which killed off most American Chestnut Trees (Castanea dentata). The blight lasted well into the 1960’s when a Dr. Dunstan crossed American and Chinese parent trees, resulting with second generation hybrid tree’s that were fungus resistant. After 1984 these hybrid trees, from Dr. Dunstan’s 2nd generation grafted trees, are what is growing in states from southern New England, west to southern Michigan, and south to north Florida and east Texas.

After purchasing our 50-acre ranch property here in Chapel Hill, we began researching various farming options. At the time, we were living in Houston and “weekenders” in Tyler. This situation did not allow for us to raise cattle or any other type of livestock. My husband had a friend at work who was growing pecan trees in Louisiana and suggested we look at starting a pecan orchard because the growing conditions were similar, and the soil was a nice sandy loam.

In February of 2014, we went shopping for Pecan trees at the Bob Well’s Nursery in Lindale. There we stumbled upon a row of chestnut trees. The prospect of growing delicious chestnuts intrigued us both and that day we bought 10 three-to-four-foot trees in containers. Five American and five Chinese chestnut trees. During that year we had two American Chestnut trees die and then replanted the second year with Dunston’s.

We celebrated our first chestnut harvest of 8-pounds in October of 2019 and 9-pounds in September of 2020. By September of 2021, the harvest increased to 85-pounds and most, if not all, come from just five trees. Over the same period, similar aged pecan trees produced no nuts.

When we compare our pecan trees and our chestnut trees hands down the Chestnut trees have outperformed and been much easier to grow. The chestnut trees are faster growing, are more drought resistant, less attractive to leaf eating insects, and their root systems are much less desirable to pesky gophers. This has resulted in a lower mortality rate for chestnut trees.

As we look ahead to larger harvests, our attention turns toward preserving these tasty nuts for others to enjoy. Our experience thus far shows the nuts ripen and fall in the mid to late September period, well ahead of the holiday season when thoughts turn toward traditions past and present.