Breakthrough in blight resistant American chestnuts

[Bucket]

Truly blight resistant American chestnuts with no Chinese cross-breeding may be available soon:

 

[TnBob]

That would be nice!

 

[BSK]

Fascinating.

 

[Ski]

That would be the nuckin futs!!!

 

[younggun308]

Need a Federal program to Johnny Appleseed those bad boys.

 

[DoubleRidge]

The one guy mentioned they may have approval by August 2023...hope this works out!! Would love to plant some!!

 

[BSK]

I would plant hundreds.

 

[MickThompson]

This would be a boon for wildlife but a nightmare for barefooted hippies across the historic range

 

[M T Pockets 000]

I have hoped and prayed for a true blight resistant American Chestnut in my life time. Maybe it will happen. I will plant a few trees

 

[Shooter77]

I hope this works, love to see these great American chestnuts return to glory!

Couple of videos on the American Chestnut

 

[Huntaholic]

I would plant them by the thousands! As a professional forester, NOTHING would make me happier than to replant every single property I cut in American Chestnuts!

 

[dg7080]

I have several Americans growing in containers. I hatched them last winter from nuts sent to me from the chestnut foundation.

I am to plant them in a test grove on my farm this winter and when the transgenic tree is approved, hopefully next year, they will supply me one to plant in the grove to cross pollinate with the pure American in hopes that a percentage of the offspring will be blight free.

We shall see...

 

[chestnut farmer]

Thats awesome !!! Been waiting to hear something like this ever since i first read about the american chestnut years ago.

 

[Popcorn]

I would plant hundreds.

Ditto

 

[Hillbilly Hunter]

Need a Federal program to Johnny Appleseed those bad boys.

Absolutely! Sign me up!

 

[JCDEERMAN]

I would plant hundreds.

Same here.

I have several Americans growing in containers. I hatched them last winter from nuts sent to me from the chestnut foundation.

I am to plant them in a test grove on my farm this winter and when the transgenic tree is approved, hopefully next year, they will supply me one to plant in the grove to cross pollinate with the pure American in hopes that a percentage of the offspring will be blight free.

We shall see...

The American Chestnut Foundation sent me 10 to grow from nuts last year. They came up to about 12", then died. I have a fairly good green thumb, but not one survived. Was kind on bummed.

 

[JCDEERMAN]

I would plant hundreds.

Man, same here!

 

[dg7080]

Same here.

The American Chestnut Foundation sent me 10 to grow from nuts last year. They came up to about 12", then died. I have a fairly good green thumb, but not one survived. Was kind on bummed.

I had several die too, but have 4 survivors. They are about 15 inches or so tall. I plan on putting them out next month... I planted them in a mix of some cheap potting soil and soil from the farm here. Hopefully they will survive the transplant into their new home on the hill..

 

[dg7080]

Man, same here!

If the new transgenic tree project works, it will be years or decades before the forest would be once again home to the mature American chestnuts. But hopefully my grandkids and great grandkids will get to sit under their shade someday...

 

[JCDEERMAN]

If the new transgenic tree project works, it will be years or decades before the forest would be once again home to the mature American chestnuts. But hopefully my grandkids and great grandkids will get to sit under their shade someday...

And that's what it's all about. I'm 39, so I'd love to plant many of them and hopefully atleast be able to see them produce in my later years.

 

[BSK]

If the new transgenic tree project works, it will be years or decades before the forest would be once again home to the mature American chestnuts. But hopefully my grandkids and great grandkids will get to sit under their shade someday...

Exactly. I would never see the benefits, but future generations would.

 

[Moonman]

And that's what it's all about. I'm 39, so I'd love to plant many of them and hopefully atleast be able to see them produce in my later years.

I'm 39 too and what I do now I'll never see, but my kid and grandkids will.

 

[budro2]

I had several die too, but have 4 survivors. They are about 15 inches or so tall. I plan on putting them out next month... I planted them in a mix of some cheap potting soil and soil from the farm here. Hopefully they will survive the transplant into their new home on the hill..

Ive planted hundreds of these , they worse than apples to make them grow well .
But, my biggest problem has been planting them where i wanted them, not where they needed to go.

Full sun, well drained soil is a must.

 

[budro2]

I'm on the list to receive some,( i expect it will just be a few or couple) I have some mother trees ( 100% American ) planted for them to cross with,

they get more attention than my apple trees.
.

 

[Deck78]

we are in the early stages of logging off the pines on our property and are going to try and reinvest the profits with large acreage planting of chestnuts from Whitetail Hill. Would love to see the future of our farm have American stock vs this hybrid solution!

 

[BSK]

we are in the early stages of logging off the pines on our property and are going to try and reinvest the profits with large acreage planting of chestnuts from Whitetail Hill. Would love to see the future of our farm have American stock vs this hybrid solution!

That's going to be a lot of work, but my hat is off to you for trying it. Best of luck and keep us updated.

 

[Deck78]

The way we figure it, we have no other course of action but to go big with some type of restoration project. We purchased the property at a time when the previous owners had skipped the 10-15 year thinning stage and we are now entering the 25 year mark, no pines have ever been touched and the general consensus from the loggers and other consulted professionals is that we are likely going to struggle with the health of the pines that we leave standing. We are not talking about a few acres of pines but rather an area likely over 300 acres of them so we gotta do something.

We are going to break the logging into 3 catergories and adjust the plans accordingly based upon how the pines react to everything.
- clear cut the most dense ridge tops where there has been no light to the understory and no other plant/tree life exists
- thin the areas where we have canopies that have allowed light to the forest floor for the oaks and other trees to reach a life stage where they should thrive once given more room to grow (this is where we have been told the remaining pines may just start snapping after they are left with so much room in the canopy)
- removal of large pines from areas where pine is the loosely scattered amongst desirable hard and soft woods

I will definitely be sharing with the group and looking for feedback as we go!

That's going to be a lot of work, but my hat is off to you for trying it. Best of luck and keep us updated.

 

[BSK]

That is a great plan Deck78. Love the different approaches to dealing with the pines based on the situation.

When we plant pines for habitat, first we plant them only in small patches (1-4 acres), just to provide 'something different" for the deer to utilize in windy, rainy, snowy conditions. Then we plant them at a wide spacing (10' x 10') to allow a lot of other plants to germinate in that location. However, I have to admit, by 25 years of age, even these practices can't stop the pines from becoming a mono-culture with little undergrowth. Then the pines have to either be thinned or removed.