Chestnut – Castanea sativa

Plant family: Fagaceae

Plant origin: Asia and South-East Europe

Fruit description: The nuts are produced and dropped from the tree in Autumn. The nuts are high in moisture content and do not keep well. Store in cool or cold conditions in a bag to prevent drying out.

Flowers: The male and female flowers are located near each other. They occur in Summer.

Growing conditions: The chestnut is a large handsome deciduous tree which can grow to 15 metres in height. It prefers a cold to mild climate with a cold winter and warm or hot Summer. It grows strongly even in heavy soil. Good rainfall and a chilling period (frost or snow during the dormant period) are beneficial for the tree to crop heavily. The soil should be very well drained. Once established the tree can resist drought.

Uses: The raw nuts are not very edible. The skin needs to be removed, either by blanching in hot water, roasting in an oven or over a fire, or microwaving (try just for a few seconds at a time). You must slit the skin before cooking or the starchy nut will burst when it is cooked. Peel the nut while it is hot or warm as skin is hard to remove once it cools. Once cooked, chestnuts are a delicious sweet starchy food with many uses. Chestnuts can be used in stuffing for meat or poultry dishes, or boiled and pureed for use in rich desserts. Chestnuts are great roasted with Autumn and Winter vegetables such as potatoes and carrots. Chestnuts can be refrigerated to extend storage life. Chestnuts are not oily like most other nuts. Instead they consist mostly of starch and a little protein. They contain vitamin C, calcium and potassium. Chestnut wood is rich in tannin and hence useful for outdoor uses such as fence posts or furniture.

Medicinal uses: The leaves can be used to make a 'tea' to treat respiratory diseases, including whooping cough.

Pollination requirements: Self-Pollinating.

Harvest time March – May. Nuts can be collected from the ground but wear gloves because the nuts may still be inside a spiky husk and you can get the spikes in your hand. Try raking the nuts into the sun so they dry out enough to split the husk. Then you can get the nuts out.

Plant relatives

Special features:

Grown by method: Seed Grown Pot size: 6 litre

Plant growing Height and Width for pots or in the ground planting: Grows to 15 metres high by 7 metres wide if Planted in the Ground.

Shipping plant pot or planter bag size: 6 litre