chestnut?

[RKenney]

A friend of mine gave be a bunch of chestnuts that her parents
pick up from the ground on their property. The land is in Maury
County, but I don't recall ever seeing chestnuts around this
area. I know chestnut trees were abundant many years ago in
Tennessee, but I thought they were all killed off by some blight.

I ate a few of them and they tasted pretty good. The shell is
rater soft, kind of like acorns, but a little harder. I guess my
question is, do deer eat them?

In this area, I have never ever heard any hunter say "my setup
is over a few chestnut trees". The chestnuts are here though,
because I ate some myself that grew about 8 miles from my home.

 

[BSK]

Chinese Chestnut are about the top nut tree you can plant for deer. My parents have quite a few in their yard and the deer fight over them. The spiney hulls are heck on feet and tires though!

 

[RKenney]

I guess I need to kiss up to my friend's parents.

 

[PickettSFHunter]

There alot of different cultivars out there. And deer seem to love them all. Chinese are resistant to the blight as well as some hybrid cross American/Chinese. Im in the horticulture program at TN Tech and our school currently has a nursery of 400 hybrid crosses. They were injected with the virus several weeks ago to see if just maybe a "few" will survive and have blight resistance.

 

[BSK]

That's very cool research smstone22.

If we could ever produce a blight-resistant American Chestnut, we would change habitat management dramatically. The oak dominated hardwood forest we have now are not what we used to have. Our hardwood forests used to be a Chestnut dominated forest, and Chestnuts are more regular nut producers than oaks.

 

[mr.hicks]

ive heard they have produced some 90 some % american/blight resistance strains and that they are planting them at various strip mine lands. i hope its true.

 

[PickettSFHunter]

There are some blight resistant crosses out there but they dont exactly mimic the American Chestnut. It is beleived that the American Chestnut once made up 30% of the Eastern forest. The best cross I know of is the Dunstan, you will pay some money for those though.

 

[Boone 58]

Yep, they eat the heck out of them.

 

[spoon]

Going to order 5 chinese chestnuts. Going into a very small bedding area to plant them

 

[Football Hunter]

That's very cool research smstone22.

If we could ever produce a blight-resistant American Chestnut, we would change habitat management dramatically. The oak dominated hardwood forest we have now are not what we used to have. Our hardwood forests used to be a Chestnut dominated forest, and Chestnuts are more regular nut producers than oaks.

Would they move in front of White Oaks for deer preference?

 

[BSK]

That's very cool research smstone22.

If we could ever produce a blight-resistant American Chestnut, we would change habitat management dramatically. The oak dominated hardwood forest we have now are not what we used to have. Our hardwood forests used to be a Chestnut dominated forest, and Chestnuts are more regular nut producers than oaks.

Would they move in front of White Oaks for deer preference?

YES!!! Much sweeter nut. Super preferred.

My parents have quite a few Chinese Chestnuts in their yard, and the deer pour out of acorn-filled woods to fight over the chestnuts.

 

[Football Hunter]

That's very cool research smstone22.

If we could ever produce a blight-resistant American Chestnut, we would change habitat management dramatically. The oak dominated hardwood forest we have now are not what we used to have. Our hardwood forests used to be a Chestnut dominated forest, and Chestnuts are more regular nut producers than oaks.

Would they move in front of White Oaks for deer preference?

YES!!! Much sweeter nut. Super preferred.

My parents have quite a few Chinese Chestnuts in their yard, and the deer pour out of acorn-filled woods to fight over the chestnuts.

well good,I have 6 planted on my place now,couple more years.......

 

[Boone 58]

you are so right Bsk.....i have hoped most of my life that there will be a break thru in research and we will live to see it. My step moms dad in the early 70's told me of how fat the squirrels would get on eating them when he was young enough to remember them here in Tn. man i just know that was a sight to behold.